


Last Resort

by murmelinchen



Category: Divergent (Movies), Divergent - All Media Types, Divergent Series - Veronica Roth
Genre: F/M, PoW, Prisoner of War
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-22
Updated: 2016-06-05
Packaged: 2018-04-10 15:04:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 33,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4396481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/murmelinchen/pseuds/murmelinchen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eric gets imprisoned while trying to take Tris hostage in Amity. Four wanted and still would kill Eric if it wasn't for Tris. She has a plan in mind to find out whether Eric is really such a monster. What she finds buried deep inside the man she would have never been prepared for. (I had to change the rating eventually.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

The first few days felt awkward as if they had forgotten all about him, an Amity boy or girl came by bringing him food once a day guarded by a former Dauntless soldier. He tried talking to them but they didn't exchange any words or glances even, quickly putting down the tray with a jug of water and some bread. He had tried climbing up the wall towards the small window but it was too high up. He couldn't hear anything from outside, or inside the building for that matter. It seemed they had found him an abandoned prison all to himself, except he was locked into this small cell.

When Four stepped into view behind the metal bars Eric smirked, "Well well, what a pleasant sight, Four is condescending to visiting me."

The other man had a smug grin on his lips, "Get up."

Slowly Eric rose and stepped towards the bars. "Turn around and put your hands behind your back," he instructed and Eric hesitated but did as he was told.

He heard a handcuff click on his right wrist the metal cold against his skin. Four grabbed his other hand and pulled him back forcefully and Eric frowned when he felt the bars press into his back. Then the other handcuff clicked in place and he made a move to step away from the bars but the noise of metal against metal made his whole body tense. Four had restrained him to one of the bars.

He glared at the other man over his shoulder and wondered what he was up to, swallowing the tiny lump of unease as Four unlocked the door and stepped inside the cell. Eric's glare turned into a smirk and he was just going to sneer a cocky remark when suddenly Four punched him into his stomach sending the air from his lungs. He bent over to ease the pain only to be reminded that the handcuffs were holding him in place.

Eric looked up to see Four clenching his fist growling down at him, "I was this close to ending your pitiful life." Eric chuckled darkly, "Until your girlfriend foiled your plan, huh?"

Four didn't answer, instead he smashed his fist across Eric's jaw, his body twisting to the side. He suppressed a groan when he tried to bring up his hands to his face and he heard the metallic clink of the small chain between the handcuffs.

"You deserve to die," he growled venom dripping off of each word.

Eric gritted his teeth, he didn't want to give Four the satisfaction of seeing him being weak. "Is that all you got?" he spat out looking up at Four.

"What is it that Jeanine wanted from Tris? What kind of test was she going to put her through?"

Exhaling slowly Eric fixated his glare at Four, "I don't know, I don't care." He brought up his knee in defense when he saw the next blow coming but Four pushed it down and punched him in the ribs.

Grimacing he straightened and snapped, "What is wrong with you? Is your girl not into this kind of stuff so you have to let it out on me?"

He knew it was coming before it did but his restraints made it impossible to duck, he felt his nose crunch when the other man's fist connected with his face and he dropped to his knees, the horizontal metal strut preventing him from toppling over completely.

Four bent down, "You are pathetic!" he drawled close to his ear and Eric spat out to the floor, blood coming from his mouth. And from the droplets of blood coming from his nose he could tell that it was bleeding as well.

"Four!" The voice suddenly startled both of them and Four jumped up in surprise to see Tris who stood behind the bars an incredulous expression on her face, "What are you doing?"

"Interrogating our prisoner." Eric wanted to snort but winced at the pain in his face.

"It looks more like you are torturing him." At that Eric straightened up as best as the handcuffs would let him and got a smug grin on his face showing his blood stained teeth, "I'm fine."

Tris looked at him seeing that his gaze was directed straight ahead a rivulet of blood trailing down from his nose to his chin.

She frowned back at Four, "Get out," she simply instructed.

Eric as well as Four noticed the harshness in her voice but Four didn't move. Her voice remained dangerously calm when she spoke again, "Get out now."

Four hesitated just a moment longer before stepping out of the cell and his retreating footsteps could be heard as he made his way out the building but it took a few more seconds before Tris stepped into the cell.

Eric tried to look up at her but she was already kneeling right in front of him. His cloudy grey eyes met her concerned green ones and she looked at him almost as if searching for something in his eyes.

"I am going to remove the handcuffs," she said calmly and showed him a small device. He looked at the object for a second with a sour expression, she was the one to tase him succeeding to capture him.

Her compassion was replaced by a stern glare and she tapped her finger warningly against the Taser, "If you move I am going to use it and you already know how that feels."

Eric gulped nodding and she moved to his side opening the handcuffs. He nearly fell forward when his hands were free noticing just how weak he got from eating close to nothing the last few days. Bracing himself with one hand to the ground he moved to get up when he felt her hand grabbing at the crook between his biceps and forearm. But with an annoyed huff he shook her off.

Tris looked at his back a frown forming on her face as Eric walked over to the sink. Turning on the faucet he washed the blood from his face while Tris turned around and locked the door. But she didn't go yet staring at Eric's back.

When he was done washing his face he grabbed the towel and dried his face, carefully examining whether the bleeding from his nose had stopped, seeing that it hadn't quite yet he pressed the cloth to his nose.

Turning around he saw that Tris was still standing there watching him.

Before he could open his mouth she stated, "You are going to stay here for a while longer."

He averted his eyes to the towel, once more checking on the amount of blood which was decreasing, "I figured as much."

Pressing the fabric to his nose again he returned his eyes to her to see a strange look of concern in her features. "As much as I know you deserve this, I think it is no solution. But you should realize that what you have done to innocents cannot go without punishment."

He clenched his hands into fists at that, looking down in defiance and in a small tone he defended himself, "I didn't torture anyone..."

Tris chuckled strangely at that, "No, you only helped in the complot to kill thousands of innocents."

Eric looked up to meet her glare scowling back at her, "I didn't have a choice."

She bit her lips and her voice was calm when she spoke, "You always have a choice." In an undertone of peevishness she grit out, "Just like I chose to stop your execution."

His jaw clenching and unclenching he watched her turn and walk away. He slumped down on the cot throwing the towel forcefully at the wall, releasing an angry growl of frustration.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

Days went by without anyone coming by except those who brought food.

Eric was just drowsing off to sleep when he heard footsteps coming closer. He looked up over his shoulder when he heard a clinking noise to see Four standing behind the bars. He sat up to see the source of the noise to be handcuffs Four was smacking lightly against the bars. Rolling his eyes he sighed, "I am not going to give you the pleasure of living your fetish again."

When Tris stepped into view his eyes softened just a little bit and he got up, never taking his eyes off of her. "Come here and turn around," she gestured for him to come to the bars and to her surprise he complied, slowly but he turned and moved closer to the bars. Four started handcuffing him but Eric kept his eyes trained on Tris.

Looking over his shoulder he grinned smugly at Tris, "Just so you know, if you want someone a bit gentler, I'm free." But before he could see her reaction Four shoved his shoulder breaking the eye contact.

They led him out of his cell, through the long empty hallways to a small room where several people waited for them. He saw mostly Amity, some former Dauntless and the rest weren't dressed in any particular way, they must have been the factionless. He browsed the faces but didn't recognize anyone.

Four pushed him into a chair in front of everyone. He looked to his side to see a small table with a syringe placed on it. Tris took it and as he kept staring at her she grabbed his chin to turn his head.

He hissed when he felt the needle pierce his skin. While Tris pressed down the plunger he suddenly felt very aware of her hand still lingering on his chin rubbing tiny circles, soothing him. But before he could get used to it her hand left him and she sat down next to Four, watching him like the rest of them intently.

His vision started to blur and he tried to focus on Tris' green eyes but he felt the serum kick in. He knew it was the truth serum and he was afraid of what he'd reveal. What bothered him the most was that he didn't know what he was going to tell them.

He didn't really know anything except that he was terrified to tell them that he had feelings for Tris.

Now they started asking questions, first the easy ones, who he was and where he came from, his family, how he became a leader.

But then they moved on to the topic of Jeanine's plan to undermine the system and he could only shrug. He told them that he had to be more strict, the new rules, watching for strange behavior. He wasn't supposed to ask questions and he fully trusted Max to guide him into becoming the best leader there had ever been in Dauntless.

His head began to hurt when he told them about shooting the boy that proved to be divergent while they armed the Dauntless soldiers. Max had ordered him to shoot and out of fear of rejection or his own death he had complied. And then there was Jeanine's hysteric outbreak about him being pathetic and worthless for being unable to catch Tris. She threatened to kill him if he didn't get Tris back. When he failed again and was taken prisoner by Four and Tris he had wished they killed him, he didn't want to live as a failure.

Their questions ceased and when no one said anything anymore he felt his head roll back his eyes closing.

Four grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet. He staggered and almost fell forward but Tris kept him from falling with her hand to his chest. For a moment he smiled down at her hand on his chest but scowled at her when she withdrew her hand. He was obviously too drugged to keep his facial expression in check. Four pushed him forward and with a grunt he complied.

He put one foot before the other but looking at his eyes opening and closing in a drunken manner Tris held on to his arm leading him out with Four still on the other side. Walking back to Eric's cell he shook his head to clear the fogginess but couldn't get rid of it. Tris couldn't help sneaking glances at him all so serene and when he started humming in answer to questions only he could hear, a smile crept up her face.

"Four.." he forced out all of a sudden and looked down at Tris, his eyebrows narrowing, "You don't deserve her."

It came out slurred and Four looked around Eric at Tris and she shrugged wondering whether Four had understood. Eric grinned like an idiot as if in triumph and Tris asked herself what was going on in his head.

They made the rest of the way in silence until they stood in front of his cell and Tris opened the door. Four heaved him inside and stumbled as Eric tripped over his own feet. Tris rushed to his side and helped him up laying him down onto the cot, his face connecting with the bed as soon as their hands left him.

From the corners of his eyes he could see her still standing next to him. "Tris, I..." he mumbled reaching out his hand slowly for her wrist feeling the warm skin beneath his fingertips making it the last thing to remember before he drifted off to oblivion for good.

Opening his eyes to the dark sky above he sighed, looking at the stars before lowering his eyes towards the small figure. He smiled when she turned around away from the ledge towards him. Although he stood in the dark shadows she saw him, she walked over to him her hips swaying lightly making him grin in anticipation.

Tris touched Eric's arm gently cupping his cheek with her small hand and he leaned into the soft skin of her palm. "I've waited for you," he whispered as she closed the distance between them. His arms snaked around her waist drawing her closer bringing up his other hand to tuck back her hair. When her lips captured his it was timid at first but turned passionate and hungry quickly.

A sudden gunshot noise made him look up at Four behind Tris and when Eric looked down at Tris her body was limb in his arms blood dripping from her side.

Eric woke with a start, his eyes flashing open to the dull grey walls of his cell. His head was aching and he grimaced in disgust when he lifted his head off the mattress noticing the small puddle of saliva where his mouth had been pressed against the fabric. He glanced up at the window noticing that the sun was just about to rise.

The dream had come back to him as of late and he didn't mind. It was soothing him every time he replayed it in his head. He knew that back then it had been different, she didn't see him watching her from the shadows, needless to say that they didn't kiss. But he had wished to do so, ever since she had stood up for Al, he admired her for her bravery and that she'd rather endanger herself than others. He had always suspected she was divergent and yet he wouldn't deliver her to Jeanine in hopes that he was wrong about it.

He shot up into a sitting position when he heard a noise from the cell door. Turning around he saw Tris standing there in the darkness. He jumped to his feet and staggered feeling a wave of nausea wash across him.

He braced himself against the wall and Tris mumbled, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up."

His feet made padding noises as he walked over to her. She leaned back a little when he approached and he grimaced inwardly remembering that he could look menacing at times. He felt another wave and grabbed the bar with one hand leaning his forehead against his forearm. He tried to suppress a groan as his other hand grabbed onto the bar for support.

"Are you alright?" Her voice was but a whisper. He hummed in response and she grabbed on to the bars to take a closer look at him.

When he looked down at his hand he was glad that his face was hidden behind his arm because he couldn't stand to see the rejection he was sure to see in her face as it overcame him. His hand was just so close to hers.

Tris could feel his fingertips brush across the back of her thumb. He was surprised when she didn't flinch away. He caressed the soft skin on the back of her hand. He let out a sigh from a breath he didn't even notice holding in.

Tris tried to see his face as his big hand closed timidly around her small one. He relished this moment, her warm skin against his hand was soothing him. He wondered whether it was just another dream.

"Eric?" He lifted his arm away from his face and she could see his eyes bore into hers. Whatever was going on in his head, she couldn't tell, he was hiding it very well. She didn't say anything for a few moments not wanting to break the intimate moment.

When his eyes dropped to their joined hands she spoke, "Why did you say that Four doesn't deserve me?" His hands left the bars, left her hand and it felt cold against the night air. He rubbed his face to hide the anger that started boiling up at the mentioning of Four, "Shouldn't you be in bed with him now?" he spat out through gritted teeth.

She sighed shoving her hands into her pockets, "I couldn't sleep."

He snorted thinking, Yeah because you were wandering in my dream.

He looked at her with tired eyes which were glaring at her now and she wondered about his sudden mood swing. "So, you came here to me out of all people? How low can you get?" he sneered and his nostrils flared.

Her lips parted and he regretted opening his mouth immediately when she started turning around. He grabbed her arm through the bars and to his surprise she didn't tear away from him.

"I'm sorry," he pleaded, "Don't go away."

She frowned when she heard the turmoil in his voice. He sighed, "I just woke up from a nightmare, I'm a bit out of it."

She sat down cross-legged in front of him and looked up at him with wide eyes. With a small smile she patted the ground right next to his feet prompting him to sit down. He sat down and leaned against the bars staring at her beautiful dark green eyes.

"Tell me about it," she inquired. Eric snorted, he couldn't tell her out of all people what his dream was about. She smirked playfully at him, "Or don't."

He narrowed his eyes at her and rubbed his face in an attempt to think of what he could tell her. He sighed in exasperation as the scene of her in his arms bleeding to death played out again and again. After a long moment he looked up at her compassionate eyes fixated on him, "Someone got shot in my dream, I can still feel the blood on my hands.."

"Who?" He cleared his throat but didn't say anything, how was he supposed to explain that he had dreams about her.

"Was it a family member?" He shook his head raking his fingers through the short beard that had grown during his stay here in the prison. "Was it someone from Dauntless?"

He let out a long breath and looked into her eyes, "Yes, one of the initiates. They got shot and I couldn't do anything about it, they were bleeding to death in my arms."

She touched his leg in affection, "But it was only a nightmare, right?" He fidgeted with his fingers and nodded.

"You want to know why I couldn't sleep?" He stared back at her making a small gesture for her to explain. "I was thinking about you."

His heart skipped a beat at her open confession and if the light was any brighter she could have seen him blush. When he didn't say anything Tris explained, "Four is leaving tomorrow for a meeting with Evelyn and the factionless. He told me to keep you imprisoned until he returns."

His lips drew to a thin line and he sank his head in defiance. "I don't think it is fair, though. Clearly you didn't know a thing about the attack on Abnegation before it began. Your interrogation showed as much."

She sighed and looked at his hands which were nervously scratching at the dry skin around his fingernails.

Suddenly she stood up and Eric followed her, she was nervous he could tell and waited for her to speak. "I'll come back tomorrow and I want to let you out." Hastily she added, "On probation, of course. You will wear a tether and you will help the Amity people in the field or where ever they need help." She watched him biting her lips and after a moment he nodded slowly, "Fine. If that is what it takes to get out of here."

He hated the idea of working with the Amity but he would hate to stay imprisoned even more. She smiled and bounced on the balls of her feet seemingly excited to go through with her plan. He wanted to hug her in thanks but the bars prevented him from doing it so he cast her a smile and whispered, "Thank you."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

Eric waited for Tris to get him the next day but she didn't and he was mad at himself to let his hopes get the better of him. He got up pacing back and forth before settling done on the floor doing sit ups. Each time he bent up an angry huff escaped him, his mind was whirring - he wanted out. He kicked the bed in frustration and lay his head down on the floor staring at the ceiling. He had enough of spending time alone with his thoughts, he couldn't stand himself most of the time anyway. Damn Jeanine for making such a mess out of him.

It was already getting dark when he heard a car coming up and soon after Tris came to his cell with Will.

"Good evening," Tris greeted him with a tiny grin. "What the hell is so good about this evening? Didn't you want to get me out?" he growled.

"I'm sorry it took so long, I had to do some more negotiating to get you out. Would you please get dressed?" He had taken his shirt off for his exercises, he crossed his arms over his bare chest and smirked, "Don't like what you see?"

She blushed and tried to keep her composure, "Do you want to get out or not?" His grin grew wider at her display of authority, "Aw, you want me to beg?"

She raised her eyebrows and kept her cool, "No, I want you to get dressed."

He chuckled and grabbed his shirt and jacket, when he was dressed she showed him a small black device with black straps dangling from the sides. Crouching she commanded, "Come on closer, so I can put this on you."

He did as he was told and put his foot close enough to the bars so she could reach him. While Tris fastened the tether to his ankle he looked at Will who wore an expression as if to ask whether Tris was really sure about it all.

"Does this say now that I belong to you?" he asked humorously, he thoroughly enjoyed teasing her.

She sighed getting up, "No, it says 'buzz, you're too far away'. The tether is set to a certain distance, if you trespass it, it will go off and give you an electronic shock. We also have remote controls for it, so you don't want to try anything funny."

He nodded still grinning but when she took out the handcuffs from the back of her belt and reached inside he glared at her not moving. "Give me your hands!" she said sternly. He didn't respond and kept glaring at her.

"Eric," Will spoke up for the first time, "This is just a precaution, we don't know whether we can fully trust you yet."

Eric's eyes bore into hers but begrudgingly he lifted his arms. Not breaking the eye contact she handcuffed him. When she was done she patted his arm lightly, "Good boy." His nostrils flared but he decided against saying anything.

Will unlocked the cell door and Eric was lead out of the prison with Will on one side and Tris on the other. Her small hand on the back of his upper arm she guided him to a car.

He looked out of the small window at the setting sun as they drove off and felt a smile tug at his lips, it was beautiful to say the least. He hadn't seen the sun in a while and had almost forgotten how he enjoyed watching the sun rise and set.

Absent-mindedly he rubbed his fingers through his beard noticing how long it had gotten. "By the way," Tris cut through his thoughts, "Will volunteered to live with you for now." He nodded, he didn't care where he'd live, he was just glad to be out of this lonely cell.

They arrived at the Amity village just a few minutes later and when they got out of the car they walked to Will's house, people passed him watching him, judging him quietly. He couldn't help but glare at them, he hated this, he didn't deserve it.

Tris pushed him forward and Will lead the way until they stopped in front of a small house. Will opened the door and Tris lead him inside.

"Home sweet home," Will declared flashing him a warm smile.

"I'll take the handcuffs off now, promise you won't do anything funny?" Tris asked but he didn't answer. Instead he thrust his hands towards her, still looking around the living room, taking in the new surroundings which would be his home. He rubbed his wrists when they were free and hearing her sigh he looked at her. Her big round eyes were watching him, she looked over to Will who stood at the back of the living room.

He motioned to a door next him, "This will be your room." Eric looked inside, a bed, closet and a table was all there was in the small room. He shoved his hands into the pockets looking out of the floor high window. He took a deep breath and nodded and walked out into the living room again.

"We put some clothes into your closet, hopefully they'll fit," Will told him and pointed to another door, "The bathroom is over there. You might want to shower and put on fresh clothes, supper is in half an hour." He nodded his mouth watering up at the mentioning of food, hopefully other than sandwiches and water.

After he got changed, finally smelling like a human being again, he stood in the living room. Tris and Will looked at him from head to toe, he looked different now fully clad in Amity attire. Much like the Abnegation but his clothes were beige with occasional red stripes around his waist and loose navy colored pants. "Alright, let's go eat," Tris announced.

The dining hall was mostly tables and benches outside a huge kitchen and Eric followed Tris who picked up a food tray to stand in line with others to retrieve their food.

He looked around, taking in his surroundings when he heard Tris clear her throat, "You're next."

He turned to look at an elderly man who handed him a bowl of soup and a dish of pasta with meatballs, the sight of warm food made him sigh. Turning he followed Tris outside to a table which was empty and sat down opposite of her with his back towards the people whose stares he could almost feel piercing his back. Will and Christina joined them soon and they ate in silence.

He almost felt peaceful when a woman suddenly stood next to him, "You don't deserve to live, you pathetic excuse for a monster! They should have just killed you! Now you sit here and we have to share our food with you! You're not worth the air you breathe."

He was on his feet in the blink of an eye and towered over her, his rage threatening to break free. His fist twitching he suddenly grimaced in pain when an electric shock surged through his leg and grunting he glared at Tris who had held the remote in her hand.

All surrounding tables had gotten quiet and Tris watched him with her eyebrow raised. When Tris gave the woman an apologetic smile she went off and Eric sat down and everyone continued their meals.

"You will have to get used to it," Tris told him her voice stern. He scowled but finished his meal and leaned back.

"You will help Will tomorrow with mucking out the stables," Tris said when she was finished. He nodded and looked at Will who was also just finishing his meal. "We will start working at eight, it will take half the day mucking out and spreading new hay." He nodded again and got up and left.

Tris and Will waited for Christina to finish her dessert and headed for bed as well.

When Will came back to his house Eric was looking at the books he had arranged in a bookshelf that ranged from the bathroom door to the windows.

Eric smirked, "Still Erudite at heart, huh?" Will chuckled and watched the other man looking through the books, "Not all of them are mine, some were already here when I moved in."

Eric turned around heading for his room when Will spoke up, "Eric, I know the incident earlier wasn't pretty but please keep your anger in check."

Eric snarled at him, "And just let them insult me? Look, I know what they think about me and I don't care for these people at all. If they don't want me here, just kick me out and we're all off happier!"

Will pinched the bridge of his nose, "I don't know what you told them during your interrogation and I don't know why but Tris believes in you," he muttered causing Eric to clench his jaw, "So just be a little more cooperative."

Eric snorted, "Being Cooperative brought me into this situation." Without another word he turned away and slammed the door shut behind him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

The next day Eric got up early to go running, he hadn't so since he had to go after Tris by Jeanine's command. Running had always calmed him down and running on the spot in his cell had been dissatisfying to say the least. He felt the familiar sting in his legs after pausing from it just like he had after Tris shot him during the Abnegation attack. He couldn't blame her, she had all the right to assume that he was part of it.

After the run he made himself a tea and sat on the patio watching the sun rise. This had been his routine for many years after he found out that this was calming him. He always had problems with putting his engery to good use, studying had never been his thing and when the choosing day came around he never thought twice about selecting Dauntless.

A smile tugged at his lips when he saw Tris running around the field, old habits seemed to die hard, not only for himself.

After a small breakfast Will and Eric mucked out the stables and he was actually glad when Christina came to them with Tris insisting to go to the nearby pond to swim a little in the afternoon sun.

They undressed to their underwear and Christina bounded into the water with Will right behind her. The couple was already laughing splashing each other wildly while Tris took her time hissing at the cold water. Eric waded into the water and was already in to his knees.

Looking back over his shoulder he saw her awkwardly placing one foot before the other. He splashed some water her way, "Come on, sissy!"

She inhaled sharply glaring at him and he grinned back at her. He splashed again hitting her thighs smirking when she almost recoiled.

"Today, Tris!" he husked and she shot him a pointed look. He pushed his hand under the water and watched in amusement how her eyes widened.

In a wide shove he splashed the water across to her hitting her belly and chuckled hearing her whimper, "Eric, stop it!"

Christina approached with Will close behind. Eric couldn't help laughing out loud when Tris pouted, "Chris, Eric is being mean!"

He laughed throatily and watched her stalking further into the water, deciding for many reasons to not just snatch her and throw her into the water.

"I'll never get how fast you can get into this freezing water," she mumbled and Christina laughed, "I'm naturally hot, you know.."

Will came up behind her and splashed a good amount of water above her head. Eric grunted not even trying to hide the mocking tone in his voice, "Right now you look more like a drowning rat."

Even Tris was laughing now and after she made it completely into the water they swam and splashed around for a good while. For the first time in a few years Eric felt free and innocent again. When he came to Dauntless he had trained every day shutting out everything and everyone around him in order to become the Dauntless leader Jeanine and Max had seen in him. She told him again and again that he had great potential to fulfill her plans. He never thought once that she'd use him as a puppet to destroy an entire faction.

After a while Eric went out of the water, Tris following close behind rubbing her arms. They sat down at the water front, Christina and Will were still in the water splashing around wildly.

He heard Tris shudder next to him and laughed deep in his throat. He looked over to see her putting on her thin top which would barely keep her warm. Without thinking he grabbed his nearby shirt and threw it at her.

She frowned at him holding the shirt with hesitation. "Put it on, you don't want to catch a cold," he said casually. His eyes softened watching her putting on the shirt and hugging her arms around her body.

When she looked at him and thanked him he only nodded and looked away. Biting his lip he tried to even his heart rate, somehow her presence made him nervous but in a good way.

He watched the couple in the water and asked himself how people managed to be so happy all the time. He wondered how long it would take him to finally be able to let everything that happened in Dauntless behind.

Tris pulled him out of his thoughts when she spoke up, "You know, I've been wondering, for a leader you knew awfully little."

He snorted and would rather avoid the topic but looking at her concerned eyes he decided against it, "I wasn't supposed to question my superiors." She laughed without humor in her voice, "Loyal, aren't we?"

"What would you have done in my place?" he asked sitting back and braced his weight on his elbows. "Asked questions," she answered with a frown.

"I did," he stated simply. She turned her head to look at him and he saw her eyes travel up from his abdomen over his ribs briefly before settling on his face. He grinned inwardly but didn't comment on it, seeing her blush sent a flutter through his belly.

"So, what did they say?" He snorted lightly, "They told me if I compromised their work I'd be out."

She frowned, "So you just played along doing their dirty work without even knowing the consequences afraid of getting kicked out of Dauntless?" He shrugged, "Apparently."

She shook her head, "I don't believe you were so naive..."

He sat up when she turned to face forward, "Look Tris, I know you expect me to say something like Jeanine blackmailed me, threatening my family or something like that," he sighed, "But the truth is that in Dauntless I finally felt like I was somewhere I belonged and I didn't want to screw it up."

She smiled at him despite the harsh tone which made the scowl on his face falter for a second. "Four always said you're dangerous, now that I'm talking to you, it seems that...," she trailed off biting her lip and he raised an eyebrow, "That I'm just a human being like everyone else instead of the monster Four warned you about?"

She nodded and looked at the ground brushing her fingers through the grass. Looking at his hand next to her she gently brushed her fingertips across the back of his hand sending a tingle up his spine.

"We almost killed you," she mumbled. He was glad she was looking down when he felt heat crawl up his neck as her hand settled on his, the touch was so innocent he felt like he didn't deserve it.

After a moment he freed his thumb from under her hand and ran it slowly across the back of her hand admiring her soft skin. When he looked up he saw her watching him with a smile. His heart started pounding at the sight of her eyes fixated on him and he couldn't help but wonder what was going on in her head.

"If you want to talk, don't hesitate to come to me," she said compassion in her voice.

He looked down at their entangled hands huffing but quickly looked up at her face again a smirk playing across his lips, "If Four could see you holding hands with me, he would probably still assume that I am trying to kill you or something."

Tris withdrew her hand and he immediately regretted saying anything at all. "When will he back?" he asked quickly, he didn't want her to stop talking to him. She sighed sadly, "I don't know. He said it won't take long."

He hated Four with all his being but seeing her so sad about it he sighed, "Don't worry the wuss will come back sooner or later."

She shook her head laughing, "Why do you hate each other so much?"

He barked out a laugh, "I don't hate him as much as he hates me. He thinks I killed one of his friends."

She frowned, "Did you?" He narrowed his eyes, "Do you take me for killer?" She raised an eyebrow at him reminding him that he indeed had blood on his hands, "Ah hell... But no, I didn't kill him, I just happened to be the first to find him and his blood was all over me, so Four assumed it was me."

"Did you try to explain it to him?" she asked and he snorted, "Of course." He crossed his arms over his knees, "But Four had always had this little thing going on his head that I was only in Dauntless because Jeanine placed me there for her crazy plans to take over the factions."

He shrugged his shoulders, "I never rectified it, though. Now I'm paying the price for it, I guess."

He saw her biting her lips and smirked, "Okay, now that I have got this off my chest and we're so close, could you take the tether off?" She laughed nudging him and shook her head. "I promise I'll behave! Or maybe that's what you like, considering Four's preferences."

She threw him an exasperated look and he threw his arms up in defiance, "I see, you like me being at your mercy..." She grinned sheepishly and chuckled, "Yes of course, that is what this is all about."

His face softened watching her so flustered and had to bite his tongue not to tease her even more, he was afraid of stepping over the edge and eventually pushing her away.

When Christina and Will trotted out of the water they headed back to change into dry clothes. Christina and Will went in front of Eric and Tris who walked next to each other in comfortable silence. They reached Tris' house and she waved at Christina, "See you later."

When the other girl skipped off with Will Eric remained next to Tris, he rocked his hip against hers playfully and murmured, "Mind giving back my shirt?"

Looking at her feet she absent-mindedly said, "No," shaking her head she said, "Yes... I mean, no, I don't mind."

He laughed while she pulled the shirt over her head, "Don't worry, keep it if you're so fond of it." Tris slapped him with the shirt and it landed on his shoulder and he smirked at her over his shoulder following the others to the house.

Eric lay in his bed later that night staring at the ceiling thinking of the events of the last couple of days. He would have never thought that living in another faction than Dauntless could ever feel like home but just that one day had him feeling he could get used to it. And he was dazzled by the fact that Christina, Will and especially Tris were so kind to him despite what everyone thought of him.

He turned his head to the side and sighed looking at his crumbled shirt on the chair next to the bed. It was something couples did, the girl wearing her boyfriend's shirt. He had thought nothing of it but now he wondered whether he could smell her on the fabric.

He huffed turning away, don't be ridiculous, he scolded himself. He closed his eyes trying to block out her smooth hands, her big compassionate eyes and her pink lips.

With an annoyed huff he flipped to the side and grabbed the shirt pulling it to his chest and drifted off to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for the kudos, comments and subscriptions - it means a lot to me!  
> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

When Tris saw Eric holding the boy by the collar she suspected the worst and ran towards the little crowd that had gathered to watch. Tris pressed the button on the remote when he put a knife to the boy's neck, once to give him a warning. He grimaced hopping away a few feet from his victim and glowered through the people, searching until finding Tris' shocked face coming closer.

"What's going on here?" she demanded.

In his rage he was suddenly in her face snarling, "For fuck's sake I was defending myself!" She looked down at the big combat knife and let out a humorless laugh, "Against a boy? With a knife?"

He glared at her his hands clenching into fists, "This is not mine!" She rolled her eyes, "Yeah right, you've earned yourself a time out, mister! Get lost!"

She held out her hand to him for the knife and he exhaled furiously. His eyes were drilling into hers and she wondered whether it had been such a good idea to let him out.

With a sudden movement which made Tris flinch he hurled the knife in the direction of the boy without even looking but it landed point first twitching wildly in a tree. He stormed off muttering incoherent curses and Tris looked at Will who nodded and ran after Eric. She watched their retreating forms with a frown before she looked at the shaking boy, he seemed ready to ball his eyes out, "Hey can I talk to you for a sec?" she asked and he nodded.

After talking to the boy Tris went to Will's house to find him sitting on the patio. When Eric saw her approaching he held out his hands in a submissive gesture.

She raised her eyebrows at him and he sighed, "I've been bad, you want to handcuff me and send me back to prison, don't you?"

She chuckled and sat down next to him, "Are you doing that on purpose?" He shook his head, "I didn't do anything, I told you I was defending myself!"  
"With a knife against a fifteen year old scrawny boy?" she frowned, "What did he do to deserve this?"

He sat forward bending his head in defiance, "Look, I know you won't believe it but it was his knife, he attacked me out of the blue and I snatched it from him…"

"And you were going to cut his throat for it," at that he groaned in anger cutting her off, "No! I was trying to teach him a lesson, I didn't want him to get away with it just like that!"

She laughed then and he fumed at her, "What's so funny?"

She bit her lips and looked at him with an apologetic smile, seeing his nostrils flare she tried to suppress the grin, "He said you had threatened to kill his mother."

Anger flashed through him and he jumped to his feet, "I didn't!" he burst out his hands clenching into fists.

"I know, I'm sorry," she stated simply and he shut his mouth whatever he was going to say lost in confusion. She watched the muscles in his neck flex and laughed again when he crossed his arms over his chest, "What? Is this some sick joke to you, or something?"

She bit her lip and got up, placing her hand on his arm she gave him a small smile, "He said you threatened her mother but when she came to get her son he spilled the beans and told us everything. His mother apologized for her son's behavior, he was impressed by your strength and wanted to see whether he could take you on."

Eric grunted in disbelief, looked down at her hand and back up at her, "What?" She rolled her eyes, "Yes, see, not everyone wants you dead and now do me a favor and get back to work!"

He glared down at her and she could see his jaws tightening, trying to figure out whether she was serious.

She made a gesture for him to leave, "Go, stables won't do themselves!"

He stared at her a moment longer, emotions storming in his grey eyes she couldn't quite place and then left.

Days went by without another incident and people slowly got used to Eric's presence.

The sun was standing high when Christina and Tris walked to the kitchen house to take a break from their work. They were chatting as they turned the corner to see Will and Eric at the water tap that stuck out of the wall of the house.

Tris gasped when she realized they were shirtless, Will was just pouring water across his neck while Eric already seemed to have done so as his pants were already wet at the top. They were cooling themselves with the water hose. Tris couldn't resist to roam her eyes over his muscular torso while he rubbed his face.

When they neared them Christina let out a whistle and cocked her head to the side, "I'd vote for a wet t-shirt contest but it seems you've already taken it to the next stage."

Will grinned at her, "You want some?" She waved her hand, "Nah, but thanks for the offer."

But in the next moment Will pointed the hose at Christina who squealed as she was completely soaked. Tris laughed out loud looking at her friend who was dripping from head to toe. She turned furiously towards Tris who was trying to control herself, "Hey, you're not supposed to laugh at this! That was very rude!" she turned back to Will while Tris started laughing again.

She was laughing so hard she had to hold on to her belly. Christina stepped forward in order to grab the hose from her boyfriend but Eric snatched it before she could do so. Tris' eyes widened when he targeted the water at her and she pointed a finger at him in warning, "No! Don't!"

"Or what?" he asked innocently a devilish gleam starting in his eyes.

"Eric..." she warned sternly but before she could say anything else he pressed his thumb over the hole to intensify the water jet and turned it fully on her body. Tris held up her arms but she wasn't able to hide and was now completely soaked just like Christina.

Trying to recover from the shock she looked at Eric who stared blankly at her. But he couldn't hold the mask any longer when Christina and Will burst out laughing next to him and a smirk played across his lips.

Tris stuck out her bottom lip in mock anger, "That's not fair, I can't even get back at you because you're already wet!" He laughed throatily and to prove her point he let the water pour over his neck, his mischievous smirk grew even wider when she gaped at him.

"Sorry Tris but you looked so hot," he husked to which Christina howled in laughter and grabbed her arm to drag her off, "Come on, let's get changed before dinner."

Tris stared at him for a moment longer not able to tear her eyes from the water rivulets rippling down the muscles of his abdomen. She frowned as she got the feeling that he was giving her a show and strangely she found herself enjoying it.

"Tris?" She felt Christina tug on her wet sleeve and she turned to her following her to her house to change into dry clothes.

A few minutes later they arrived in the dining hall and she saw Will and Eric sitting at a table nearby. Christina and Tris grabbed some food and sat next to them. They ate in silence and when they were finished Tris looked at the glass of water right next to Eric.

With a grin she tried to grab for the glass but Eric's hands shot out, one took away the glass and the other took hold of her outstretched hand. Out of shock she stared at him with wide eyes as he pulled her close to himself.

She grinned sheepishly and she saw the tiniest of smiles in his grey eyes but her face turned horrified when she saw him moving his glass above her head. She cringed and held up her free hand, "No, I'll be good!"

He laughed letting go of her hand, "As much as I should punish you little minx for even thinking about it, I would like to drink this."

He downed the glass and looked over to Will who just finished his meal. They stood and went over to the fields back to work. Tris watched their retreating forms and jumped when Christina nudged her.

"What?" she asked in exasperation when she saw the sly grin on the other girl's face. Christina held up her arms grinning, "Never mind..." Tris scowled and couldn't resist to sneak a glance to the men one more time. Closing her eyes she shook her head mentally to get the picture of Eric's naked torso out of her head.

"It's just that I don't recall you being so wild with Four when you started dating."

Tris gaped at her incredulously, "Christina! This is Eric we're talking about..." She was cut off by her friend, "Exactly that's my point. You seem almost happy around him."

Tris snorted, "Don't be ridiculous, Chris!" She shrugged, "Plus you don't seem to mind Four being away so much."

Tris' head sank and Christina lay a hand on her shoulder, "I know that Four has been a jackass towards you the last couple of months," she smiled encouragingly at Tris, "I'm here for you if you want to talk about it." Tris let out a sigh and gave her a wry smile. "Hell, I'm even here for you if you want to talk about Eric."

Tris sucked in air audibly, "Chris! This is not funny!"

Christina burst out laughing when she saw the other girl's cheeks flame up and Tris hit her arm, "Ow!"

Tris got up and Christina followed her, bouncing cheerfully next to her, knowing that Tris wasn't mad at her at all.

Thinking back to the moment she had visited Eric in his cell when she asked him why Four didn't deserve her, he had avoided her question and got angry. It had almost sounded like jealousy, but after all she knew from Four that Eric has always been competitive about everything.

Could it be that he - she shook her head quickly, she couldn't imagine him feeling anything, especially not towards her. He had wanted to capture her and deliver her to Jeanine. Her mind went back to the interrogation where he had admitted it, but he had been forced to do so.

She sighed at all the confusing feelings she had started to form for her former Dauntless leader.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for all the comments, favourites and kudos this is getting!  
> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

"Tris, I think you should come with us."

Eric watched her look up at one of the security guys who wore such a serious expression even he got concerned. Tris got up following him, "What happened?" Eric strained his ears to hear what they were talking while walking away but only caught Four's name.

He turned back to his breakfast and froze when he saw Christina grinning at him. He eyed her for a moment before a nervous laugh escaped him, "What?" She chuckled and pointed her knife at his hair, "You know, if I don't flatten my hair it would look much like yours." He grunted only in reply and continued eating.

"I can cut your hair if you want..." she said casually with a grin. He barks out a laugh, "Hello no, I am Dauntless with all my heart but I won't let you near me with anything that could kill me."

Christina chuckled, "Come on, this'll be fun." "For whom?" he arched an eyebrow at her and Christina scoffed, "As you wish but don't come crying to me if people call you a girl!"

He shot her an annoyed look and eyed her suspiciously while she wiggled her eyebrows, finally giving in he growled, "Fine."

Just then Tris came back. She sat down at the table with her hands in her lap, her cheeks glistening with tears. Eric's stomach churned at the devastation plastered on her face.

Christina grabbed her arm, "Oh god, what happened?"

Tris tried to smile through her tears and Eric wanted to just hold her, comfort her and make her smile out of happiness.

"We have received a Morse code message that they are having trouble. Four will take even longer," she finally choked out before sobs shook her body and Christina hugged her.

Glaring at nothing in particular Eric noticed that his hand threatened to break the glass in his hand and quickly downed it before looking at Tris again.

Christina tried to brighten the mood, "You know what? Emma will be foaling soon and then we can take care of the little cutie!" Tris smiled weakly in acknowledgment, she had taken care of the mare with Christina mostly and was waiting for the horse to finally have the foal, "Let's hope everything will go smoothly, I'll see you at work." She rubbed her eyes and headed for the houses to refresh herself.

Eric didn't see Tris much that day, she had even skipped dinner and when he finally saw her at supper her face was puffy from crying. She was unusually quiet even though Christina was babbling to her with no end.

Finished with his meal he stood, "So, I'll see you later!" Tris looked up at him with a frown to see him looking at Christina who nodded cheerfully and he left to take a walk.

He felt stupid to ever think she might return his feelings. Seeing her every day had only worsened his situation. Dreams about her had become more frequent and he always woke up wishing to return to sleep. In his dreams he could be with her, there was no Four, only Tris and him. He knew from seeing her so sad that her heart was with Four and he despised the other man but he secretly envied him for what he had with Tris. Even if he couldn't have her, he at least didn't want to see her sad.

After mindlessly wandering around he found himself in front of Christina's house. Knocking he tried to push the thoughts about Tris away.

Christina swung the door open with a smile, "Welcome to salon de Christina!" His eyebrow raised he watched her bounce off and went inside. "Follow me into the kitchen!"

Standing in the doorway he looked at the chair and the utensils laying on the kitchen table. "Come, sit down!" she gestured to the chair. She filled a bowl with hot water and placed it beside him.

With her hands on her hips she stepped in front of him and he eyed her with his eyebrows furrowed. She nodded more to herself, grabbed a tube of shaving foam and before he could protest smeared the foam all over his jaws.

Stepping behind him she took a folding razor knife and was just about to start when Eric grabbed her wrist. Christina chuckled looking down at his glaring eyes, "You don't trust me?"

He stared at her for a long moment and Christina grinned, "If I cut you we will find you a cliff or something you can hang me from..." He let go of her and looked ahead.

She started humming while carefully wielding the blade across his skin, shaving away his thick beard. When she was done she stood in front of him, examining her work, sighing in content she murmured, "Look at that, there's a human being underneath it all!" He glared at her in annoyance and she laughed heartily.

Grabbing a comb and scissors she moved next to him. Combing through his long hair she muttered in an amused voice, "Let's see what we can find underneath here!"

He turned slightly towards her, "Fuck you!" Christina put a hand to her hip in an exaggerate gesture, "Aren't we colorful with words..." He sneered back at her, "I can be really colorful about your death..."

She sighed in mock annoyance, "And I can be really colorful to your nose if you don't face forward now!" she said grabbing his chin to twist his face to look ahead. "Geez, here I am doing you a favor and how do you thank me?"

She started cutting away at his hair like an expert, "What are you brooding about anyway?"

When he didn't respond she went on, "You were grouchy all day Will told me, I mean grouchier than any other day. Does this have to do with Four? Do you miss your love hate relationship?" He rolled his eyes hearing her mocking tone, "He can stay the fuck away as long as he wants..."

She laughed, "Yeah, the longer he stays away the more you get to be with Tris." He snapped at her, "What do you mean?"

It was her turn to roll her eyes at him, "I mean your presence is doing her good. Stop acting as a douche and start being a friend. She obviously sees something good in you. And she needs some friends right now, the message from this morning has crushed her."

His face sank and he thought back to her tear stricken cheeks. He had wanted to take her into his arms and hold her until she stopped crying over the loser.

When Christina was done he touched his short hair and with a smile brushed his fingers through the longer strands on top of his head. He realized that he didn't tell her how he wanted his hair. Standing he gave her a genuine smile, "Thank you."

She ushered him outside, "Whoa, where's Eric and what have you done to him?" He snorted out a laugh and went into the night.

Tris sat with her back against a tree looking up at the star filled sky. She wondered if Four was alright, the message hadn't said much and she asked herself if he'd return safely.

Eric walked towards her, his footsteps quiet but when he came into her vision her head snapped up at him. His face wore no expression looking down at her, "Can I ask something?"

She smiled uncomfortably and bit her lip before answering, "Eric, I'm not going to take off that tether, just stop asking."

He chuckled darkly looking down at his feet for a moment before he looked back up at her, this time a mischievous smile on his face which surprised Tris, and she looked up at him with both her eyebrows raised. He stretched out his hand down to her offering it with his palm up, her distrust was clearly written on her face.

When he opened his mouth again it sent a shiver down her spine, "May I ask for that dance, milady?"

"Is that a trick?" she laughed nervously but slowly she placed her hand in his big one. He rolled his eyes with a laugh, "Yes of course, I'll throw you over my shoulder and deliver you to Jeanine!"

"There is no music, you do realize that?" Without responding Eric pulled Tris to her feet stepping backwards slowly away from the tree, reluctantly she followed him watching him carefully.

His eyes bore into hers as a smirk started to form on his lips. Worried that this was a bad idea Tris halted suddenly as did Eric, but without missing a beat he extended her arm with his own and with his other arm he drew her to himself ignoring that she went rigid. She brought up her other arm to rest on his chest defensively and he chuckled at the display of distrust.

When he started moving them slowly to music that no one heard except for him she slowly relaxed looking at his face which was now only inches away from hers. He looked serene, for once no trace of malice showed in his masculine features. He just stared at her and Tris was entranced by his gentleness she didn't even know he possessed.

She tried to remember the last time that Four had been so gentle to her, he had been stressed and yelled at her a lot or worse.

They swayed in slow circles their eyes locked and Tris finally relaxed into him, her arm which was still between them crepped up to rest on his shoulder.

Trying to remember the last time Four had kissed her passionately she brushed her fingers across the bare skin of Eric's neck without thinking about it. To her disappointment he broke the eye contact with a sigh and looked up at the sky. Pointing with his finger, their hands still entangled he said calmly, "Do you see the star formation over there? The sky is perfectly clear to see it today..."

But Tris was too focused on examining his face, she had never really looked at him up close. She couldn't help but notice how handsome he actually was.

Christina had shaved of his beard and had his hair cut as well, now they were as buzzed at the sides as when she first met him and he kept the middle as a fauxhawk.

He told her about other star formations but she barely listened to him tracing her thumb carefully across the tattoo on his throat. At the gentle touch he tensed momentarily and she saw his eyes close. Eric turned his head down, hugging Tris to his chest. His head resting close to her temple she could feel his breath on her shoulder.

His chest rose when she grazed her fingertips across the back of his neck again and couldn't help but smile when she heard him exhale shakily. She brushed her fingers up into his hair, lightly massaging his scalp she enjoyed the short stubble on her fingertips.

She felt him hugging her closer and brushed her lips against his throat and all of a sudden he drew away from her. Tris saw him scowl with his eyes closed and frowned but before she could open her mouth he opened his eyes and hurt was evident in his grey eyes.

Eric grabbed her shoulders softly but firmly, "Tris, look, I know how sad you are and I was going to comfort you but I don't like to be a crutch."

It made her heart ache at how hurt he seemed to be thinking that she was only using him.

When he turned away from her without another word she felt tears stinging her eyes. He wasn't even looking back retreating with his shoulders slumped to the house, leaving her alone.

She wanted to shout after him but the knot in her throat made it even hard to breathe. You are no crutch, she thought bitterly.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all, thanks for all the encouraging words and kudos! To be honest, I had a bit of trouble with this chapter, so please tell me what you think!  
> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

Two days went by and Eric had already gone back to being the distant person Tris had known during their time in Dauntless. He didn't speak to her let alone look at her, and she felt guilty. Guilty that she was actually in a relationship with Four and she was longing for Eric's embrace again. She just had to talk to him.

Determined she walked over to the fields where he was working with Will. Her heart beat faster the closer she got to him. "Hey Tris, how are you doing?" Will called out to her and Eric looked up over his shoulder in surprise to see her, brushing the sweat from his forehead with the back of his arm.

She cleared her throat when she realized that her eyes were travelling down his body once again, "I'm good," she smiled and looked over to Eric, "Can I talk to you?"

Eric scowled but nodded, "Let me just finish here."

Tris went back to work as well, watching him from time to time and when he was finished she saw him heading for the houses. She sighed and climbed down the ladder heading towards the communal kitchen. Tris poured herself a glass of water and sat down on the porch in front of the building.

When Eric turned the corner to the porch he froze momentarily when he saw her and she smiled up at him. But he didn't smile back and stepped into the house behind her. Tris hesitated a moment, fidgeting with her hands before following him. Sitting down at the table behind him she watched him pour a glass of water for himself before downing it almost instantly and then pouring another glass. He turned around and they stared at each other for a few seconds before he made a gesture for her to talk, "So?"

Tris felt like her heart would burst, she was embarrassed and wished she would just be able to tell him how he made her feel. But seeing him glare at her she wondered whether this would be a good idea. She got up eventually and his face softened when stood right in front of him.

"Eric, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I was actually enjoying what you did there to comfort me," she mumbled.

He frowned down at her when she placed her hands on his forearms that were crossed over his chest. His face softened and he nodded but he didn't take his gaze off of her hands which Tris noticed were squeezing his arm as if she needed support to keep standing.

"I guess I missed Four," she blurted out without thinking about it, it was no lie but it wasn't the truth either.

At a loss for words she caressed the warm skin on his arm noticing little bumps from long healed scars. A few had been particularly deep but were concealed by his tattoos. Looking up at him she noticed him watching her and blushed.

He gave her a half-smile, "I'm not mad at you or anything. There aren't many who can resist me," he laughed when she punched his shoulder, "I was just very busy working all these days."

Tris bit her bottom lip, "So we're good?" He sighed, "Of course, but if you'd excuse me now, I have to get back to work."

She nodded, "Me too, Christina is probably already raving about where I am." He downed the glass of water and went outside with Tris watching him.

When supper time came around all tables were full when Eric came so he sat down alone. Tris was done with her meal and she watched a little girl about four years old walk over to Eric. At first she was scared what would happen because Eric tried his hardest to glare her down. But the girl wasn't scared off as easily, she put a book next to him and he sighed pointing to his food but she whined and insisted for him to read the book to him. Tris chuckled when he bowed his head in resignation and downed the last of his food quickly. When he was finished she crawled nonchalantly into his lap, he pursed his lips but otherwise didn't complain.

Tris stood up and went a wide circle so Eric wouldn't see her as she made her way towards the table just behind him. She sat down and listened to him reading, he even changed his voice for the different characters and answered the little girl's questions patiently.

Suddenly the girl closed the book and announced, "Alright, that's it for today." Probably just in the fashion her mother would and jumped off of his lap to skip back to her parents.

He sat there for a moment longer until he got up. Turning he froze when he saw Tris sitting behind him. She was smiling warmly at him, "Didn't know you were good with kids."

He grabbed his plate to return it and pretended to be glaring at her, "I'm not so good with people but the girl didn't seem to know me."

She got up and followed him outside where it was raining and they stopped. The night air was still warm and the rain wasn't as bad.

Tris nudged Eric's elbow, "I'll race you to my house." He snorted and grinned at her, "Think you can outrun me?"

She bit her lip and smiled sheepishly, "Well, I'm still running every second morning!"

"I know," he smirked when her eyes widened, "I run every morning and by the time I drink tea I see you running."

She grinned pointing a finger at him, "Are you watching me?" His smirk grew wider in response and rubbing his eyebrows he joked, "Ah, you got me!"

He looked down at her green eyes, wondering what she would think of him if she knew that he was indeed watching her as soon as he found out her running habits.

His smirk turned a quirk even more devilish when he stepped forward and slapped her arm in a good nature, "Tag, you're it!" he husked and ran off.

Looking back over his shoulder he saw her standing dumbfounded. But very quickly she regained her composure and darted after him through the rain.

A few minutes later they arrived on her porch and laughed as they looked at each other's drenched bodies. The short jog between the dining house and her home had drenched their clothes. Tris opened the door and went inside, leaving the door open for Eric to follow her. She got two towels from the bathroom and handed one to Eric before disappearing into the bathroom to change into dry clothes.

When she came out Eric stood in the kitchen with his shirt off drying his hair. She felt just the slightest tinge of uneasiness watching him so openly. She was so caught up in admiring the rippling of his muscles underneath his skin that she blushed when his movement stopped and his grey eyes stared right back at her. Eric smirked when he realized that he caught her but didn't say anything.

Handing him a button-down shirt he frowned at it but took it and she stammered, "Four has never worn this, don't worry!"

She moved past him to the other side of the kitchen, "I'll make tea for us to warm up." He nodded and leaned against the counter opposite from where she started to work on boiling the water and setting up the cups.

While he was buttoning up the shirt his eyes travelled down her back and was hypnotized by the slight swaying of her hips when she reached for something high up in the cupboard. She had put on pajama pants which were merely hot pants, revealing too much as he got lost at the sight of her beautiful long legs.

When she stopped moving he looked up at her, startled to see that she was looking at him over her shoulder and cleared his throat, "Pardon?"

"What would you like to have?" You, it shot right through his head and he rubbed the back of his neck.  
"Would you like some peppermint tea?" He nodded, "Sure." She poured the hot water into the cups and handed one to Eric. They walked out to the patio to sit down. Tris pulled up her legs to sit cross-legged and sipped at her tea while he stretched out his legs.

"So?" she inquired but Eric raised an eyebrow, "Soo?" She smiled into her mug, "How come you are so good with kids?"

He cleared his throat and smiled back at her, "My mother was a teacher in kindergarten and I had to help her every now and then. Playing with the kids, teaching them stuff and reading to them."

She hummed in response, "Could have never imagined you..." "Were not such an asshole all the time?" he offered with a wry grin and she cast him a sad smile, "That's not exactly what I wanted to say. I believe deep down inside you have always been a nice person. You just forgot how to be nice."

He snorted and looked down at his mug, "I didn't forget how to be nice, people just tend to assume that once an asshole always an asshole. Look, I know I have done some stupid shit, things I won't ever forget I did, and everyone else won't forget either, but..." He sighed not sure what to say and took a long sip from his tea.

Tris placed her hand on his forearm, "Eric.."

"It's okay, Tris. I cannot undo those things, I just have to learn to live with it." He noticed her eyes were fixated on his forearm rubbing gently across the crisscrossing scars. He sighed and though he was enjoying it, it was the last thing he would want to talk about.

He offered a tiny smile when she caressed one of the longer ones, "I think this one is by Four, from training with combat knives."

"And those?" she asked looking up at him with so much compassion in her eyes that it made him almost choke on the next sip of tea. It was too much for him, he wanted to kiss her right then and there and as if it was the first time he didn't know how. His heart tumbled and he had to clear his throat, "It's nothing..." he answered lamely.

Sighing he got up, "Thanks for the tea." Tris also jumped to her feet her face contorted in confusion.  
They stared at each with Tris biting her lips and Eric's hands clenching nervously in the pockets of his pants when she suddenly laughed out and grabbed the collars of the shirt, "You buttoned it lopsidedly!"

He looked down at himself and saw that he had missed two holes and grinned, "Well, you want to help me button it up?"

She bit her lip and was just about to reply when Christina suddenly bounded around the corner, "Tris! Emma is foaling!"

Eric shot Christina a dark look which she ignored completely and Tris grabbed the cups to return them inside, "Oh this is great, let me just get dressed!"

Absent-mindedly Eric asked, "Do you need any help?" Tris gaped at him, "With getting dressed?"

His eyes darkened momentarily before breaking into a smug grin, "So that's what you've been thinking about!"

Furiously blushing she went inside to put on a jacket and shoes before dashing off with Christina to the stables.

The days after were busy for Tris, she took care of the little foal but Christina, Will, Eric and her made it a habit to sit together after supper. Tris was sitting with Eric after Christina and Will had left and he glared at her, "Are you serious?"

She laughed blushing, "Yes, we never had any dance events or anything." Eric was incredulous, "But people in Dauntless danced in the Pit all the time. You can't tell me you never...," he trailed off going over to the ancient record player on the sideboard and opened the doors in search for any records to play.

"There!" he exclaimed, "More of a slow song but it'll do." He switched on the record player and put the needle to the record.

Turning he smirked at her while a slow song started to play. When she didn't move he grabbed her wrists and pulled her up putting her hands on his shoulders and placed his hands on her hips. When he started moving them in slow circles he grinned, "So you didn't have a clue what I was doing the other day?"

She gulped, "Well yes, I did. I am not that dense. I was confused and I have to admit, I was a bit terrified you'd do something to me." He nodded in understanding and hugged her closer to his body. They turned slow circles and Eric made an effort not to let his hands roam her back. He could never forget himself if he messed this up, they had gotten so close over the last couple of weeks. He had found he needed her presence, that she was making him feel at peace.

Her breath was tickling his neck and just like the other day her fingers trailed softly across his neck. She reached up slowly feeling the warmth radiating off of his skin when her lips touched his jawline lightly just below his ear. When she felt him lean in to her she felt encouraged, placing soft kisses to his jaw moving further towards his chin.

His heart was already pounding in his throat but when she reached the corner of his mouth it seemed to skip a beat and he drew back. "I don't think this was a good idea," he narrowed his eyes and stepped back from her afraid of what was going to happen if he didn't stop her.

"I think it felt pretty nice," she blushed, her dark eyes boring into his. He bit his lip, "Yeah, it did, but you should consider Four, right?"

Her face fell and he sighed in resignation, "I don't even know how this works," he gestured between them, "I didn't have any serious relationship since..," he trailed off and frowned which made Tris giggle softly. Eric shot her a mock glare, "I guess I never had anything serious except for half a year and that was back in Erudite," he laughed his face softening.

Tris couldn't help but grin and leaned into him, "No wonder you're always so grumpy." He smirked in return, "I know this concept is foreign to you but not being in a relationship doesn't mean you don't get to have sex."

She stared at him with both her eyebrows raised, "How many..?" He chuckled in response and looked at the ground, "I don't keep track of such things." He grinned at her when she made an unbelieving noise. She smiled at him, glad to see this side of him which she was sure no one in a long time had seen.

They kept staring at each for a long moment before Tris averted her eyes and went out on the porch suddenly in need for fresh air. She wondered what had made her do it, she was still with Four and yet it felt so natural with Eric.

He followed her and stood next to her. His eyes lingered on her face, trailing down from her eyes across her high cheekbones to her lips, admiring the rosy color against her tan skin. He should have just let it happen, secretly he had been waiting for it for a long time. Now they were in an unbearable in-between state he felt uncomfortable with.

He took a deep breath, held it and scratching the back of his neck he let it out shakily. Hoping that Tris didn't notice he turned shoving his hands into his pockets, "Is Four your first..?"

Sheepishly she nodded, "Yes, in Abnegation you mostly don't have any physical contact with the opposite sex until you're married."

He snorted, "Not even kissing?" She shook her head. "How do you know you want to marry someone if you didn't at least kiss them?" She frowned, "Kissing doesn't serve any purpose for having babies.."

"And enjoying kisses and sex would engulf you too much with yourself," he concluded for her to which she nodded.

He shook his head in amusement, "You stiffs... So, you and Four never had anything going on?"

She blushed at how straightforward he was speaking about it all and bit her lip nervously, "Well, we did of course. We are not in Abnegation anymore, you know."

He laughed a bit at her shyness and chuckled, "Yeah, now you are in Amity. Free love for everyone." He drew a mock serious face, "Except for Eric, he participated in some fucked up genocide."

Before Tris could think about it she was hugging him standing on the tips of her toes. He needed a moment to comprehend what was happening and then drew one hand out of his pocket to place it lightly on the small of her back trying to resist the urge to pull her closer.

"You deserve some love," she whispered into the crook of his neck and he leaned into her embrace. He sighed inaudibly when he smelled her soft fragrance and he had to shake his head mentally to think straight again. "I'll go to bed now," he muttered into her short hair.

She turned her head towards him stepping away from him but his hand on her back prevented her from fully getting away from him and she chuckled nervously, "Yes, it's been a long day."

Their faces were still only inches apart and his eyes flickered briefly to her lips before returning to her eyes as if asking for permission. She took it as a hint and closed the distance between them timidly and her eyes fluttered shut.

Barely able to restrain the groan that threatened to escape his throat at the softness of her lips he withdrew. Looking at her full lips so ready for him he smiled and when she opened her eyes to look up at him longingly he felt the urge to lean back in but resisted.

He felt heat crawl up his neck realizing what they had just done, "We shouldn't be doing this," he whispered.

Her face fell and he gave a chaste kiss to her forehead, "Good night, Tris."

Tris could only nod in response and she was blushing wildly when she watched him walk away. Biting her lip she shook her head wondering how he managed to get under her skin in such a short time. A few weeks ago they wanted to kill him and now she longed to be with him.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys are amazing - thank you for all the wonderful feedback! Again it amazes me how many people follow and favourite this story.  
> Please leave a review and tell me what you think about this chapter!  
> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

"Eric..." Will groaned impatiently, "Christina told me to make you wear this - she will kill me if you show up in your usual clothes!" Eric glared at him, "What's wrong about my clothes? It's just a little party where no one will look at me anyway!"

Will sighed trying to keep his patience, "No, it's her birthday and everyone should dress nicely, including you! So get going." Eric growled some curses but otherwise complied. He looked at himself in the mirror, he had to admit the combination of the white shirt beneath the blue button-down shirt and black pants didn't look so bad.

"And shave!" Will called from his room. Eric rolled his eyes, "I just shaved a few days ago!" "Exactly! Now do it or Christina will strangle me after she killed you!"

When both of them were done they headed over to Tris' house, she had the biggest one so they decided to have the party there. Will gave Eric an appreciative nod before entering the house, rolling his eyes Eric followed.

As soon as they were inside Tris and Christina greeted them from the doorway to the living room. Christina circled him looking at him from head to toe, "Nice Will, you've made a decent human being out of him!"

She chuckled and he pursed his lips in annoyance but when he looked over to Tris who was smiling at him his face softened. "Didn't know you could look so elegant," she teased him and he looked over at Will with his eyebrow raised. He mouthed, "You're welcome," and then headed into the kitchen where Christina was pushing Eric as well, "You will help in the kitchen, we'll take care of the decorations!" she ordered.

They were so caught up cutting the veggies that they looked up in surprise when Christina and Tris bounced giggling into the kitchen.

"So, what do you think?" Christina piped up and both girls turned around to give a full view of their outfits and then placing their hands on their hips beaming at them in expectation. Eric couldn't help but stare, Tris looked sexy in that flowery baby doll dress with thin straps over her shoulders.

Will said out loud what he was thinking, "Wow, you look amazing!" He nudged Eric, "Right?"

He saw Tris looking eagerly at him and said the first thing that came to his mind, "Breathtaking!" He was surprised at how honest it came across and felt his cheeks flaming up when he saw Tris blushing in appreciation.

Christina squealed, "That's exactly what we were going for!" She laughed happily with Tris and turned around taking Tris with her, "Let's take care of our hair!"

Will turned to Eric a smile playing across his face, "You know, one would think you're all frozen up inside!" The other man looked down at the knife in his hand and then up at Will with his pierced eyebrow raised. The color in Will's face faded and he gulped struggling to mutter, "Alright, never mind." He smirked and they continued preparing the food.

By the time they were finished people came filing into the house. Tris and Christina welcomed every single person warmly while Will and Eric brought the food out to the backyard where tables were set up. When Eric came back inside to get the rest of the food an elderly woman came up to him muttering. She saw who was in front of her and made a wide circle around him which made him glare at her to which she muttered even angrier.

Tris happened to witness the scene and strolled over to him placing a hand on his arm whispering, "You're doing great, don't let them get to you." He huffed placing his hand on hers, "Don't worry about me." In a much lower voice and with a smile he added, "You look gorgeous!" Her blush was thanks enough for him and he stepped inside to retrieve the rest of the food while Tris busied herself pouring beverages into their guest's cups.

When it was dark Christina sauntered over to where Eric was sitting by the fire poking around the dying embers with a stick. "Hey," she greeted him with a warm smile, "Mind if I sit down here?" He looked up in surprise and shook his head.

He brushed away the coal on his pants and noticed Christina smiling at him from the side, "You don't like to hang around people much, do you?"

He looked up at her with his eyebrow raised and after a long moment he grunted, "People don't like to hang around me."

Christina laughed and waved a hand around in a wide gesture, "Yeah, you got that death air around you!"

He glared at her briefly and when he made a move to get up she grabbed his elbow, "Oh Eric, don't mind me, I was only joking. Candor, remember?"

He sat back down cross-legged and stared into the fire noticing Christina fidgeting with her hands. "I really like what you do to Tris." He narrowed his eyes at her, "What do you mean?"

She huffed and gestured to her friend who was laughing with a young girl, "Are you kidding me? Do you see how happy she is since Four left and you two started hanging around each other?"

He snorted but was unable to take his eyes off of Tris, watching her eyes squint in laughter, cute dimples forming around her mouth, her hands clapping together in delight at whatever the girl was babbling about.

"I would be happy as well if Four got lost," he replied smugly. She laughed, "You really like her a lot, don't you?" He scowled, inwardly thankful for the dark light that hid the blush but before he could say anything Christina nudged him, "Don't worry, she likes you as well."

He felt the heat cross from his cheeks to his ears and down his neck and he had to squeeze his eyes shut trying to block out the mental image of him kissing Tris back on her porch. He had made an effort not to be around her so much the last days, he knew he wouldn't be able to resist her.

"She deserves someone better than me," he forced out through clenched teeth.

Christina shook her head giving him a sad smile, "No, she deserves someone better than Four. By the way who do you think she dressed up for like this today?" He scoffed but couldn't help his eyes wandering to Tris again. "Well, she didn't exactly say for you but she asked specifically to look smashing today," she nudged him, "I succeeded, didn't I?" He let out a small laugh and nodded.

When Christina and Will finally left around half past five it was only Tris and Eric left. He sat in the living room where they had been sitting for the last couple of hours. One by one people had left until only the four of them were sitting together. They had talked for almost three hours, he even had a chance to speak to Christina about the chasm incident. Looking back at it now she even boasted how long she was able to hang in there. But otherwise Eric was mostly quiet while the rest of them chatted and laughed without end until Will was drifting off and Tris called it a night.

She stood in the doorway to the living room and smiled at Eric who looked up at her with sleepy eyes. "You can crash on the couch if you want," she offered. He rubbed his face and got up stretching, "I'm fine. I'll just head over to my place."

He watched her picking up plates from the couch table and sighed, helping her he brought some of the cups and plates into the kitchen. Tris put the dirty dishes in the sink and let some water in.

He placed his hands on her shoulders, "You should go to sleep now."

Although it was meant as an innocent gesture he felt her lean into his touch pressing her back into his chest with a sigh. It must have been his tiredness or the anticipation of what could come next that made him run on instinct.

He leaned down and placed a kiss to the bare skin on her shoulder and when he heard her sigh he continued to the crook of her neck. Feeling her tremble beneath him he left a trail of open mouthed kisses up her throat.

Strangely it was then that she found her voice again, "I thought we had established we shouldn't be doing this?"

He smirked against the shell of her ear and let out a low chuckle, "You shouldn't be doing this. I am free as a bird..."

He rubbed his hands up and down her arms, all of a sudden unsure whether he should indeed be doing this. He would ruin Tris and Four's relationship and if it didn't work out he would ruin whatever he had now with Tris. It meant everything to him, he hadn't let anyone get so close to him since he had joined Dauntless.

She must have sensed his hesitation as she turned slightly in his embrace to look up at him.

Her small hand reached up to cup his cheek and caressed his jaw with her fingertips. Her eyes were half-lidded staring openly at his lips in expectation.

Unable to resist he timidly brushed his lips against hers, his heart was beating so loud he wondered whether she could hear it. He cupped her face capturing her lips in a tender kiss.

Wanting to be even closer to him she turned in his arms to fully face him placing her hands on his shoulders. He started kissing her slowly, not yet deepening it simply enjoying her lips move against his.

But when he gently bit her bottom lip and she moaned into his mouth he demanded entrance by touching his tongue to her slightly parted lips. She granted him access willingly and he couldn't restrain the guttural growl coming from his throat.

Folding his arm around her back his other hand held onto her slim waist feeling her arch towards him. In an attempt to get even closer she wrapped her hands around the back of his neck. His large frame completely pressed against her small one he devoured her mouth, her utter surrender overwhelming him.

He wouldn't have been able to stop if it wasn't for the noise of the front door opening and closing with a loud thud. Their eyes flew open and she stared right into Eric's with shock.

Panting heavily he watched fear gradually creep up into her face. When they heard shuffling in the hallway Tris tore away from Eric and dashed out of the kitchen leaving him breathless and in fear of what was to come.

He raked both his hands through the longer strands of his hair and after a moment he sat down at the dining table with his face buried in his hands.

He had never felt anything like it before as he could almost literally hear his heart shatter at his feet when he heard her voice travel from the hallway to the kitchen, "Four?!"


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, please, tell me what you think!  
> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

Tris stared at Four struggling to get out his shoes and jacket at the same time. "Hey Tris, you're still up or already up?" He approached her and pulled her into a hug she was too shocked to return with equal force. Her mind whirred unable to comprehend whether she was dreaming or whether this was really happening.

Her stomach churned when Four hugged her tighter and all she could think about were Eric's lips on hers only moments before.

Four stepped past her chuckling, "Did you throw a party here?" This time she found words to answer him, "Yes, Christina's birthday...," she trailed off when she realized that he didn't kiss her in a greeting, wondering at the same time how she would have felt like if he did.

She followed close behind him and gulped when Four froze at the kitchen door and Tris could see anger boiling up quickly, "What is he doing here?"

Horrified that he might magically know what had just happened she hastily replied, "We were only talking!" It was only half a lie she told herself and looking at Eric's expressionless face she was relieved that he played along.

Four grit his teeth, "I mean, why is he out of prison?" Eric pulled up one leg of his pants and pointed to the tether, "Don't worry, Four, I'm wearing one of these."

But Four didn't listen to him, he directed his anger completely towards Tris whose eyes started welling up, "I...," she began but Four cut her off, "It was an order to keep him imprisoned! Why did you let him out?"

He was now literally in her face, she was afraid of him and Eric could tell it was not the first time. "He is dangerous, Tris!" he gestured towards Eric whose eyes were downcast trying to figure out a way to relieve her of this miserable situation.

"Can't you see that?" Four insisted and watched Eric get up sneering at the other man.

When he spoke Tris could hear resentment in his voice and her tears streamed down her face freely. "As I am too dangerous to be around, I'll take my leave now." He brushed past Four and touched her arm gently with his thumb while passing her in a gesture to reassure her that everything would be fine.

She didn't want him to leave but she called out to him, "Good night, Eric!"He turned his head just slightly in acknowledgement before opening the door and quietly closing it behind himself.

When Eric was outside he sighed in frustration raking his fingers through his hair. The night had been perfect, so peaceful, he felt accepted by the majority of people for the first time in a long while.

And then that kiss just minutes ago. He had poured all of his heart into it, never wanting it to end, at least not like that. And as much as he knew he should he didn't regret it at all.

When he was inside the house he fell to the cushions on the couch face first and in frustration growled into his pillow. It wasn't fair, all of it. He wondered whether she felt the same, but remembering the tears on her cheek he had the feeling they weren't out of happiness that Four had returned.

As hard as he tried he couldn't get her out of his head, they just fit so perfectly, not only physically but she was picking up the scattered pieces of his soul, seeing him for who he really was instead of pointing the finger at him and blaming him for everything that had happened.

He could still feel her silken lips on his, her small womanly body pressing against him. He replayed the kiss in his head over and over again, trying to remember every single bit of it in attempt to keep the memory in case it would never happen again. Holding her close felt right, as if it was meant to be.

Hearing a door open and close quietly he flopped onto his back.

"Hey, I thought you'd stay with Tris?" It sounded more like a statement than a question and Eric looked up at Will, "What?"

The other man sank to the arm chair opposite of the couch, "You can hide your feelings well but I see how you look at her."

When Eric only sighed in response he asked, "What happened?"

Eric shot up into a sitting position and glared at Will, "Four!" he exclaimed rubbing his face in frustration, "Four is what happened!"

Will was taken aback by Eric's sudden outburst and knew better than to talk now. The other stared at the ground seemingly contemplating on what to share with Will.

At long last he whispered, "I kissed her." Will didn't say anything, appreciating the other telling him so openly. "I shouldn't have done it," he sighed brushing away invisible dust from the couch table. "I shouldn't have let her get close to me in the first place," he went on not looking at Will, he seemed content just to be able to rant, "It was all wrong from the beginning and now I fucked it up majorly!" Eric leant back on the couch and exhaled in frustration.

"Well, whatever you did, it can't be as bad as what Four is doing to Tris," Will said after a long pause, "She was glad he left, from what I heard from Christina."

Eric raised an eyebrow at that, "Why?" he asked his curiosity piqued. Will shrugged, "She doesn't talk about it, but telling from the bruises on her arms and cheek one day... She said she had been hit by one of the horses."

Eric snorted, "Are you serious? Role model Four?" Will nodded, "Christina had tried to talk her into leaving him but either she doesn't want to or he doesn't let her, I'm not sure."

Eric huffed, "And you as her friends are not doing anything against it?"

Will leaned forward and sighed, "We told her over and over again, that we are worried about her, that what Four is doing isn't right. But in the end Tris is an adult just like us, she has to make the decision to get away from him. And if she decides to stay with Four, for whatever reason, then that's it - we can't force her."

Will tried a weak smile, "When Christina and I noticed that something was forming between the two of you," Eric looked away staring at nothing in particular, "We were glad that Four wasn't here to intercept. And even though some people still think that you are mister evil himself, we saw your good side in the last weeks. Tris wasn't this happy in a long while."

Rolling his eyes Eric pinched the bridge of his nose, contemplating Will's words. After a moment he let out a long sigh and got up, "I'll go run - I have to clear my head, I won' be able to sleep now anyway."

Eric hadn't seen Tris the next day and it made him sick to hear people say that Four was probably making up for lost time.

He decided to visit her but on the way to her house he met Four and he motioned Eric to take a walk with him. "How are you doing?" he asked and Eric could feel how Four was forcing himself to be casual. "Great," he replied curtly.

"No more feeling like killing people?" He grit his teeth knowing that the other man was only trying to provoke him, "I'm putting the energy into my work and I jog every morning," he smirked and gestured around the Amity village, "I even found out how far I can go without triggering the tether!"

It was meant as a joke but Four didn't laugh, instead he frowned, "So, you're planning on running away?"

He shrugged, "At first of course, but then again I get free food, I can do whatever I want, as long as I don't piss off Will, Tris or Christina. I'm still a prisoner but at least I don't have to follow any stupid orders."

"You're not in the least bit angry that Jeanine is not getting you out of this?" Eric let out a throaty laugh, "Jeanine can go fuck herself! She has messed up my life enough."

They went a few feet in silence before Four spoke up again, "So, you won't do Tris any harm? You're not going to kidnap her, get Jeanine to capture her or anything?"

He rolled his eyes and snorting he tried to suppress a grin, "I won't do anything to her that she doesn't want me to do..."

When they arrived at Tris' house she was sitting on the porch watching the two approach. She got up and smiled at them in a greeting.

Four grabbed Eric's arm and pulled him closer, "Stay away from Tris," he warned in a low tone, "I will send you back into prison if anything happens to her!"

Rolling his eyes Eric forced himself to look at Four, glaring at him but didn't say anything. He would have pushed him away or even punched him if Tris wasn't watching them.

He saw her frown and reluctantly he turned to go to his house. He couldn't resist to look over his shoulder but quickly turned around cursing under his breath when he saw Tris in Four's arms.

She was watching him leave with sad eyes and it hurt. And it hurt even more since he knew what Will had told him about Four and he wanted Tris away from him but didn't know how.

When they were inside Tris sat down and smiled weakly at Four.

"Where have you been all day?" he asked roughly and she bit her lip, "Here, I didn't feel so well."

He approached her and lay his hands on hers sitting down next to her, "What's the matter?"

She gulped looking down at their entangled hands, suppressing a sigh she closed her eyes and drew one hand away from him placing it on her belly.

"Are you pregnant?" Her eyes snapped open grimacing at her herself, quickly placing her hand in her lap. She had to avert her gaze away from Four's compassionate face and only managed to shake her head.

Four's hand on her chin made her look back at him, "Then what's the matter?"

Tears started welling up at the thought of breaking his heart, telling him that she fell for his archenemy. So instead of telling him the truth she choked on a sob, "You've been gone for so long!"

He smiled compassionately, "I know," he leaned forward, his face inches away from her, "I can make up for that though," he whispered closing the distance.

For the first time in months Tris wasn't afraid of him, forgetting about the physical and mental bruises he left, forgetting about all the hurtful things he did and said. She felt his hands rub up her arms wrapping his arms around her back.

Tris kissed him back but was unable to stop herself from comparing him to Eric. Four was kissing her softly but something was missing, she missed the urgency that came with an edge, she missed the passion. She tried to find what used to make her belly flutter with excitement for the man.

Leaning into him she tried to turn the kiss more passionate, just like she had experienced with Eric. His strong hands on her hips, his arm pressing her against his chest, the soft skin of his jaw against her fingertips, the dominance he radiated she was all too willing to succumb to.

Four sighed at her assault which made her realize all of a sudden that she wasn't kissing Eric. She felt a pang of guilt rip through her entire being as if she was cheating on Eric even though she had just been cheating on Four mentally while kissing him.

Unable to keep herself from imagining Eric's lips on hers she drew away panting, "Four..."

He was equally out of breath and grabbed the back of her neck to pull her back into another kiss but Tris' hand on his chest prevented him from doing so, "No," she breathed, "I don't feel so well - I didn't sleep much. I'll go to bed now."

She opened her eyes to look at him, pouring all the love that was still left for him into her eyes before getting up.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am still so amazed at how much love this is getting! I hope this chapter lives up to expectations after the absence of Eris in the last one.
> 
> Also, this chapter is dedicated to all those regular readers and reviewers. A special shout out goes to Feigningintrest, dardarbinx101, Bookslover2000 and HeSetMeFree (here and on Fanfiction.net), they are amazing people to talk to and keep inspiring me!
> 
> Anyway, enjoy and don't forget to tell me what you think ;)  
> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

Tris didn't sleep well that night so she decided to go for a run very early. She snuck out of bed when the morning started dawning hoping that Four wouldn't notice. She had to clear her mind, Eric was present in her dreams the whole night. She had tried to come up with something to tell Four about what happened but every scenario ended bad for her and she was afraid.

Afraid of the man she once loved so much and would have trusted her life to, even would have given her own life to save him.

On the other hand was Eric who had tried to capture her and deliver her to Jeanine without even knowing why. He had been following orders blindly and in a corner of her mind she wondered whether she should still be afraid that he might still be considering it and only not doing anything because he was now their hostage.

But she couldn't imagine him using seduction to lure her into letting him go. The passion felt real and she definitely wanted more of him.

Shaking her head in an attempt to get him out of her mind she noticed Eric's retreating back in the far distance as he just took off for a run of his own.

After Tris had run for what felt like an eternity she decided to head over to Christina's instead of returning home. Will and Christina were still asleep and she went into the kitchen to make herself a tea.

As soon as she was sipping on her tea the front door opened and Eric entered. He went straight to the bathroom not noticing that she was there. Tris made another cup of tea and hopped onto the counter, drinking her tea she waited.

Drumming her fingers on the surface she bit her lips wondering whether he would now grow distant again and leave her alone. She didn't want this to happen, she wanted to kiss him again, it had felt so right. Just thinking of the kiss made her tingle from head to toe.

When Eric was done in the bathroom he entered the kitchen and froze briefly to see her sitting on the counter but quickly regained his composure. He didn't smile or say anything which disappointed Tris, it was the first time after their kiss that they were alone and she had wanted to be alone with him. She had wanted to talk to him about what happened between them or at least kiss him once more.

She watched him go for the cupboard and clearing her throat she pointed to the already prepared cup. He gave her a small smile and leaned with his back against the counter next to her.

They drank in silence and Eric was unsure of what she expected him to do. If he kissed her she might push him away, if he kept his distance she might think he wasn't interested anymore. He didn't want neither and for the first time in a long while he felt insecure of what to do.

He heard her sigh and her head connected with his shoulder. Leaning to the side he looked at her mouth from the corner of his eyes. Her mouth was drawn into a pout and he had to smile inwardly. Tris shifted slightly to look up at him but his eyes remained glued to her lips.

Eric felt his heart beating in his throat when she rested her forehead against his face. Draping her arm over his chest she caressed his jaw line and the side of his neck with her fingertips. It sent goosebumps all over his body and he wondered how he could have lived without it and how he would manage if he wasn't allowed to ever feel it again.

"What about F..." he started but her thumb over his lips silenced him caressing the sensitive flesh. Breathing became hard and he realized that he was holding his breath.

Nudging her head up softly he let out a shaky breath and looked at her eyes which were staring at his lips in anticipation. He leaned towards her and she met him half way without hesitation.

Suppressing a groan he felt her kissing him back with fervent desperation. He realized he longed to be with Tris even though it was still forbidden, but it made him burn with desire even more.

Withdrawing he grinned at her admiring her flushed cheeks but before he could do or say anything she kissed him again. Her lips were moving frantically against his and he almost dropped the cup he was holding onto to keep himself from grinding her into the counter.

They broke apart when they heard Christina shuffling to the kitchen, "Good morning, hey Tris, you're here?"

Tris waved sheepishly and Christina eyed Eric who was nonchalantly sipping on his tea. "Alright, I'll go shower if you don't mind!" Tris shook her head and Eric pointed to his still damp hair, "Just did."

When Christina disappeared into the bathroom Eric waited a moment and when he turned to put the mug down on the counter Tris pulled him towards her frantically. She pulled at the front of his shirt but he leaned just out of reach. He placed his hands on both sides of her thighs and he stared at her panting, her chest rising with a desperate whimper.

Eric couldn't help a smug smile to tug at his lips when he saw her eyes flicker between his eyes and his mouth, "What do you want, Tris?"

She finally managed to yank him towards her, his resistance crumbled looking at her full sensual lips. Tris kissed him with such force that his heart skipped a beat at her unspoken confession and he moaned in satisfaction.

Still he made an effort not to touch her as he wouldn't be able to hold back. Instead he leaned back a few inches to look at her smirking, "Me?"

Without saying anything she latched onto his mouth again and he grinned against her lips. Breathless he murmured, "Are you sure?"

Tris didn't respond but continued her assault on his lips once more, cupping his face in her hands and he hummed with contentment. He let her take the lead, kissing him with such fervor that it made every fiber of his body longing for her even more than anything.

Still one more question forced itself out between taking a breath, "What about Four?"

At that Tris suddenly stopped and looked away ashamed resting her head against his shoulder panting. She pressed herself against him and he could feel her hot breath through the fabric of his shirt.

He slid a hand across her back hugging her close to him, caressing her thigh affectionately, gripping it when he felt her lean into him even more. He placed kisses up the side of her throat until he was at her ear and whispered, "You can't have both of us, you know?"

Tris sighed in frustration and he grabbed her chin forcing her to look at him, "I can wait for you," he whispered and added with a stern voice, "But not forever."

She nodded, "Just give me a bit of time to sort this out, please?" He nodded and took his mug leaving her scowling at him at the loss of his body heat against her.

And just then Christina entered the kitchen and eyed them suspiciously. While Tris blushed furiously Eric chuckled low in his throat and left the kitchen, leaving Christina and Tris without another word.

While they were sitting together for dinner Four eyed Tris with hard eyes, she tried not to flinch when he asked, "Where have you been this morning, Tris?"

Her eyes flickered briefly to Eric which didn't go unnoticed by Four but Eric kept his face neutral and his eyes on his food. "I went jogging like almost every morning," Tris attempted a smile but she was too shocked that he would ask her.

His eyebrows narrowed and his face almost turned into a glare, "And where have you been after it?"

Tris gulped, images of Eric flashed through her mind, kissing her passionately. With a wry smile she answered, "Having tea with Christina."

She noticed out of the corner of her eyes that Eric shifted in his seat while Christina rolled her eyes at Four, "What are you so suspicious about? Tris can have a life of her own, can she not? We were talking about that great birthday party of mine."

Four's eyes bore into her but eventually he nodded not pressing the matter anymore.

The rest of the dinner went in uncomfortable silence but uneventful. Something she had rarely experienced when she was with her friends. Since Four had been away everything had changed.

Before he left she had thought that he would be the one to grow old with, even though he didn't treat her right all the time. He had apologized for what he did and he had lured her into forgiving him.

And she gave in every single time, admonishing herself for doing so, knowing it was wrong in so many ways. Even Christina shook her head at her stubbornness to admit that Four wasn't good for her, she had even tried to make her quit the relationship.  
But almost as if in trance she had tried to convince herself and everyone else that he would change, that he wasn't like his father at all.

When he told her he had to leave she was torn between being happy to have some time away from him and being alone on her own. When he actually left she felt free.

And just like that Eric had stepped into her world, turning it upside down. Cold ruthless Eric showed her that a relationship between a man and a woman should be sensual and about loving each other, opposed to violent and filled with fear of the other.

Her wandering mind had taken her behind the barn and she sat down burying her face in her hands. She was frustrated at all the confusing feelings for both men.

She was so caught up with herself that she hadn't heard the silent footsteps that approached her. Looking up she almost jumped when she saw Eric leaning on the wall next to her. With his arms crossed over his chest he glared against the afternoon sun and when she sighed he gazed at her.

Grey eyes that used to make her shiver during initiation were watching her seemingly expressionless but over the last couple of weeks she found herself able to detect warmth where he was trying to hide it.

Without a word he placed himself in front of her and held out a hand to her, without hesitation she took it and he pulled her to her feet.

Leading her inside the barn she couldn't help but take in a deep breath and a mixture of sweat and something masculine invaded her senses that so distinctly smelled like Eric, and it made her belly flutter.

Tris gasped when he turned and grabbed her waist to lift her on one of the hay balls gently. Growling low in his throat he murmured, "He's a fool to treat you like that."

And without waiting for her to reply he bent forward and kissed her feverishly. Resting her hands on his arms she arched forward to get closer. When she moaned he drew back a little his eyes dark with desire, "I need you, Tris."

She grinned rubbing her hands across his broad shoulders, "I thought you could wait?" He grinned back at her, "Obviously I can't go another day without this," he caressed her bottom lip with his thumb.

When he ground his groin playfully against her pelvis he watched in fascination how her lips parted in a mute pant and her eyes fluttered shut. Unable to resist he plunged his mouth over hers again, taking advantage of her open mouth he ravaged it hungrily.

He trailed hot kisses down her throat and she whispered his name into his ear. It pushed him on and he moved his hands beneath her shirt, the hairs on his arms rising at the sensation of her soft skin under his fingers.

He placed kisses to her collar bone, tracing her tattoo with his tongue. Lifting her shirt to roam his hands across her ribs and grabbing her waist firmly his lips travelled along the rim of her shirt.

Again his name fell from her lips, this time more urgent but not in a lustful way he would have rather heard. He looked up at her with worried eyes and bit his lips.

"Too much," she whispered trying to smile, "I'm sorry!"

Eric drew back a little at hearing her almost choke on those few words and cupped her face gently. "It's okay," he rested his forehead against hers, "You hear me? It's okay!"

She nodded and he chuckled, "I really want you now..." he rolled his hips gently against her to prove his point and smiled when she let out a breathy moan, "But I'll try my best to give you time." She gasped and laughing she nodded.

"I've wanted you for so long, I'll be able to wait some more. But please don't let me wait forever." He pleaded before kissing her passionately and she trailed her hand down his chest admiring the little bumps created by his muscular belly.

But before she reached the hem of his shirt he grabbed her hand panting against her lips, "Tris, you're killing me! If you don't want this now don't tease me."

She looked at him sheepishly and he smirked, "I already need a cold shower from this..."

When she laughed he chuckled low in his throat, encasing her upper body in his strong arms he lifted her gently to the ground. He kept her close to his chest for a moment longer and felt her hand sneaking below his shirt, her touch gentle to the sensitive skin on his lower back.

Letting out a shaky breath he grinned and dipped his head to peck her lips, "Tease." Quickly she removed her hands from below his shirt, earning a scowl from him she grinned.

He rubbed her arm in attempt to calm himself down and kissed her forehead. She smiled up at him from underneath heavy eyelids which made Eric bite his lips before he finally turned around to get out.

To Tris' disappointment Eric came late to supper that night and by the time she was finished he just started eating.

Four took her hand softly dragging her to her feet to return to their house. She turned around struggling against his grip, "Good night everyone."

Before Four was able to make her turn around again her eyes lingered on Eric's who was staring at her retreating form.

As soon as they were back at the house Four closed the door and shoved Tris roughly against it. She tried to wriggle free but his dark eyes on her made her freeze.

She gulped afraid of what would happen now. Her eyes closed insticntively when he bent down. Too shocked that he was kissing her she didn't respond. It felt so strange to kiss him now, it was totally different to the way Eric kissed her. She was afraid of Four's roughness and hearing Four's voice cut through the silence made her go even colder.

"Tris? What's wrong?" She bit her lip her gaze downcast, "Nothing." He grabbed her shoulders roughly, "Don't tell me it's nothing, you can't even look at me. What's the matter?"

She gasped stifling a cry, "Eric...," was everything that came out and she looked up at his worried eyes, not sure whether he was comprehending what she was trying to say. Not sure whether she wanted to tell him, afraid of what he might say or do.

"What happened? Did he do something to you?" he shook her. "No," she sobbed and Four pulled her into his arms. It was meant to comfort her but she went rigid. "You can tell me everything, I will make him pay for..."

"I kissed him," she forced out interrupting him.

The silence that followed was deafening and Four slowly let go of her and to look at her.

She closed her eyes to hold back tears, "More than once..."

For a long moment it was deadly quiet and she wondered whether this was only a dream and she'd wake up soon. She opened her eyes when Four's hands left her shoulders.

Just to see that his hand came down slapping her hard across the face. She stumbled from the force and fell to the ground holding her face.

Breathing heavily she wished again that it was only a nightmare, that she would just wake up now any minute.

Instead she heard Four's voice drift into her numb mind. "From Eric I would expect anything, but from you - I never thought you'd be stupid enough to trust him, let alone let him near you. What did you expect? That he'd suddenly turn into a cuddly teddy bear?" He knelt down beside her and with a deadly voice she had never heard from him he asked, "Did you like it?"

It was hard to breath but even harder to look at Four. He was furious and when she remained silent he slammed her shoulders against the wooden door sneering, "Did you like it?"

Tris winced but lifted her eyes to meet his anyway, drawing her lips into a thin line she mustered all the courage that was left and with determination answered as steadily as possible, "Yes."

It came out clearer than she thought and for a split second she felt brave to openly admit that she liked how her boyfriend's archenemy kissed her. Four stared at her and she braced herself for the violence she was sure would follow but nothing came. Four only got up, slamming the door to their bedroom shut, leaving her alone.

With shaking hands she touched her fingers to her lip and sighed when she saw it wasn't bleeding. She let out an unsteady breath and got up closing the front door behind herself.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yes! Yes, I am finally updating here! I have to admit that I needed kind of a break to fully collect myself in order to write this chapter. It is emotionally seen a very difficult chapter for all involved characters. And I definitely didn't want to just jot together words and senseless phrases but I wanted to convey all the emotions accordingly. So I hope everyone enjoys this and the length of the chapter makes up for the wait.  
> A very special thanks to HeSetMeFree who inspired the 'property' scene in here, I hope it lives up to expectations :)  
> Also, if you haven't seen yet I have another Eris story which is a bit more light-hearted and a songfic which revolves around Eric's secret feelings towards Tris (which will receive an update soon by the way).
> 
> On a more personal note, I will be on vacation in Florida in a week with limited access to my e-mails, but I will definitely reply to messages during this last week and latest when I'm back home ;)  
> So as usual, hopefully you'll leave a review to tell me your opinion!
> 
> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

Eric awoke with a start, heart racing he tried to catch his breath and looked outside to see that the sun was just rising. Rubbing his face he sat up, remembering the dream he just had he sighed heavily. He had been with Tris and they were fighting. He couldn't hear her voice but he knew it revolved around Four. He had caught her kissing Four and in his anger he had knocked him out cold. The dream had twisted when suddenly Max was there and dragged off Tris, he couldn't do anything against it and that was the moment where he woke up.

He swung his legs over the edge of the bed and with a heavy sigh got up to get dressed for his morning run. Walking out into the living room Eric was just putting on his shoes when he noticed a curled up form on the couch. He pulled away the blanket enough to see Tris asleep on the couch.

Sitting down on the couch table he noticed the bruise on the corner of her mouth, gritting his teeth he debated with himself to just leave and punch Four. He would kick some sense into the man so he would remember how to treat a girl but in fear that it would turn out like his dream he decided against it. He didn't want to wake her either so he sat there in silence, watching her sleep, wishing he could wake up next to her every morning.

Leaning his elbows on his thighs Eric didn't know what to do and he didn't want to wake her but he also didn't want her to be alone, so he remained quietly watching her.

He didn't know how long he had sat in front of her but when she suddenly stirred he took in a breath and attempted a smile as she opened her eyes, "Hey."

She blinked and sitting up she stretched out her limbs, "Hey." She smiled shyly at him while he was regarding her with a mixture of adoration and concern. Leaning forward she placed her hands on his forearms looking down at the inked skin she mused, "I always wondered what those mazes stand for."

He sighed heavily reluctant to tell her about this part of his life. But looking at Tris he decided he could try, "I tried to conceal some of the scars on my arms."

Tris watched him intently, absent-mindedly tracing her fingers across his skin, alternating between following the maze's curves and edges, and caressing the crisscrossing scars.

"Look," he sighed scowling at his own hands, "I'm not really good at this." Tris shifted forward forcing her hands to lay still on his forearms, "You're doing great, go on."

His jaws were working nervously and she smiled at him in encouragement. "I was always the scrawny boy others picked on and made fun of. My parents never thought I was good enough and I was insecure beyond belief," he sighed and shot her a glare when she chuckled quietly. Tris reached up to cup his cheek in affection, "I'm sorry, I just can't imagine you any other way. Keep going."

He leaned into her hand briefly before deciding to continue, "So in order to take my mind away from the mental pain I resorted to inflicting physical pain to myself."

She frowned at the sad confession and he considered just getting up to leave. He wasn't sure whether she understood the whole picture but he was sure that she was disgusted at his pathetic past, at least he himself was.

Something in her eyes made him concede nonetheless, "I wasn't able to fight back at the time," clenching his fists at the memories that flooded back to him, "But I wanted to. So when the choosing ceremony came around I decided to join Dauntless."

His jaws clenched turning his arms to look at the intricate symbols covering the scars, "And to me those tattoos represent my journey from Erudite to where I am up to the point of where I joined leadership." He gritted his teeth, "I'm not that scrawny little boy anymore..." he trailed off as he noticed that he was rambling.

He looked away ashamed but when she didn't laugh at him he looked back at her to see whether he could detect any disgust towards him, this was a side of him he had never shared with anyone. He loathed his past and had pushed everything away into a part of his mind that he hardly ever cared to visit at all. It always made him feel like a failure and he rather wanted to be the tough and ruthless soldier whose picture he had successfully formed over the past years.

Seeing the compassion in her face almost made him discard all of this at once. Her encouraging smile made his heart flutter. He sighed in resignation and grabbed her wrists, folding his fingers around her small hands he leaned forward and pulled her closer. Her eyes closed but she opened them immediately when he sighed sadly, "Now that Four is back you sleep here?"

She tried to pull away at that but he held her firmly and when she stopped struggling he put his fingers to her chin to force her to look at him. He could see that she held back tears so he waited patiently for her to calm down.

"We had a fight," she finally admitted. He caressed her cheek, carefully tracing the bruise with his thumb and his voice was full of concern, "I can see that."

When the first tears broke lose her head sank down on their entangled hands and with a desperate sigh Eric sank from the table to the ground in front of her. Pulling her with him into his lap he encased her in his arms and held her while she sobbed.

Eric's stomach churned at hearing her wail quietly. And as soon as she was calming down he leaned back to look at her, "Why are you letting him do this to you?"

Tris closed her eyes not able to look straight at him and while more tears rolled down her cheek she croaked, "I don't know. It's probably my own fault."

"Bullshit!" Eric gritted his teeth and pressed Tris to his chest, he nestled his face into the crook of her neck. Her sweet fragrance invaded his senses and he sighed.

Before he could stop himself he placed a kiss to her bare neck, relishing in the softness of her skin. "Eric..." she let out a shaky breath and he pulled away in embarrassment that he was so selfish to take advantage of the situation so shamelessly, "I'm sorry..."

But Tris pulled him back and clung to him desperately, "No, don't be." Nestling her face in the crook of his neck she whispered, "Help me!" Rubbing circles on her back he asked, "How?" Balling her hands into fists Tris groaned in frustration, "I don't know!"

Eric kissed the top of her head, "I know, drop him!" Biting his lip he watched her look up and for a brief moment her eyes lit up giving him hope. Just as brief it had been there her face contorted and she averted her eyes.

"We've been through so much, I can't just throw it all away, like nothing ever happened!"

It sent daggers into his heart how Tris was hanging on a thread of her relationship to Four, a relationship that was already broken beyond repair. He couldn't believe how she still denied the fact that Four was terrible for her.

Shifting upwards he pushed her gently back onto the couch. Crouching in front of her he took her face into his hands, "He is not good for you. Even your friends tell me, me out of all people!"

When he leaned back Tris held onto his shirt and wouldn't let go, she was desperate but so was Eric. He felt his own hands trembling at her sides when she gazed at him.

Slowly he leaned in for a long anticipated kiss. She met him without hesitation and as their lips molded together he groaned and she sighed in contentment.

At first the kiss was timid and he could taste the tears on her lips. Her hands reached up to caress his throat with her fingertips and it sent goosebumps across his chest at the sensation. He leaned back just slightly to look at her and opened his mouth to speak.

But then she latched onto his bottom lip and bit down. He broke away gasping her name, only to be pulled back against her lips. It was different than usual, her tongue flicked at his lips to demand entrance and he willingly let her do whatever she wanted with him.

Eric sighed and grinned against her mouth when he felt her hand suddenly underneath his shirt. Just above the rim of his pants her fingers caressed the bare skin of his back. She found a spot he never knew about and he shuddered as she grazed her fingers as light as a feather across his skin. He growled in approval and she moved her other hand to his side pushing up the shirt so she could wrap her arm around his naked torso. He shivered at the contact and his hand caressed down her side. Grabbing her waist he drew her closer to him and kissed her feverishly. She arched up to meet him and he grinned as her lips parted in a breathy moan.

Pushing her gently onto her back he smiled down at her and grinned when she urged him back down to her. Crashing his lips to hers he pressed himself firmly against her and their tongues danced in a rhythm that alternated between slow and sweet and hot and frantic. He was getting lost while all his senses were focused on the petit woman in front of him. He wanted more of her, he wanted all of her. A guttural moan escaped his throat when he felt both her hands raking playfully over his back.

Bracing himself on his forearms in order not to crush her he shoved her further to him and when she felt his growing desire against her she moaned. He opened his eyes to look at her, he wanted to see what he was doing to her. Her lips were parted expecting to be captured by his again, her cheeks were flushed in a faint pink and tiny red stains flecked her neck.

She whimpered and reaching down to pull her thigh flush against his hip he complied to her unspoken wish kissing her passionately. Groaning he saw sparks in front of his eyes when the heel of her foot pushed him against her suddenly with a desperate roughness. His grip on her thigh tightened and he tried to resist the urge to grind into her. A shaky breath escaped his lips when he felt her heat radiating from between her legs.

Their lips still locked together tightly he pulled her up into a sitting position when he heard movement from behind the bedroom's door. She frantically tried to pull him back but he sat down on the table opposite her and tried to catch his breath.

He felt a sense of pride when she whined softly at the loss of his body against her, oblivious to the fact that they were almost getting caught again. Her flushed lips and half-lidded eyes made him particularly proud and he had to refrain from leaning back in.

"Tris," he began his voice shaking heavily, desperate to force out what he wanted to say before it was too late, "I don't know how to say how I feel for you but I need you in my life! I think I-" he broke off and stared at her, the words lay on his tongue but as much as he tried they refused to get out.

Even when his head turned to look at Christina who stared at the situation before her, Tris was unable to take her eyes off of Eric. He looked back at her with a faint apologetic smile.

Only when Christina gasped as she went around the table to look at her, Tris finally looked up at her friend. "Oh my god, what happened?" she exclaimed and knelt in front of her friend next to Eric.

Tris locked her eyes with Eric's and gulped, "I," she started unable to sort her jumbled thoughts. She shook her head to clear her mind, "I told Four," she had to tear her eyes away from Eric's when his face hardened at the mentioning of Four's name, "I told him that I kissed Eric. And he slapped me."

Christina gasped and it was silent for a moment. Tris' flickered back and forth between the two. When Eric shot up suddenly Tris' hands reached out instinctively to keep him from getting away, "This is my fault!" he burst out angrily.

Christina was on her feet just as quick and jammed a finger at his chest, "If anything you are the reason Tris was able to take a break for once!" He gulped bitterly and looked down at Tris. Her eyes were wide, her hands shaking at his wrist and he tried to calm down.

Suddenly the front door slammed open and Four stormed in. Eric and Christina's heads snapped towards him. Four's eyes landed immediately on Eric who was glaring at him over his shoulder. Four pointed a warning finger at him, "You filthy little scum! Where is Tris?"

Eric stepped aside and turning to face the man he cast a quick glance at Tris who was obviously terrified now. He wanted to just beat the crap out of Four but he tried to keep his face as calm as possible, "Four, you should leave."

Four's face broke out into a menacing sneer and with two long strides he was almost in front of the other man. He watched with satisfaction as Eric's face suddenly twisted in agony as the electric waves surged up from the tether through his leg at full force.

Four used the distraction and punched Eric square across the jaw sending him stumbling to the side. Christina shouted out in disbelief but shut up when Four turned to them. Tris was frozen in place and Christina moved to stand protectively before her friend.

But Christina was forcefully shoved to the side with a squeal and just before Four was able to get a hold on Tris Eric had regained himself and shouldered him out of the way. He fell on top of the couch table and Eric grabbed Tris' arm, pulling her to her feet he shoved her behind his back.

Just when Four got up from the ground Will burst into the living room, "What's going on?" he exclaimed when he saw the scene. He rushed to Christina's side and helped her up, "Are you okay?" She nodded not taking her eyes off of Four.

To everyone's surprise Four chuckled out. Eric was breathing heavily to control himself, he was torn between beating up Four and protecting Tris.

"So, this is what it's like now, I'm the bad guy?" he chuckled darkly before his face twisted into a glare, "Come to me, Tris."

Eric lifted his chin in defense and pressed Tris to his back. He could feel her fists grabbing the back of his shirt trembling.

"Tris, I said come here!" Four's voice boomed and his fists shook at his side.

Eric's nostrils flared and as calm as the whole situation allowed it he forced out in a sneer, "She is not your property, Four!"

That drew another dark chuckle out of the other man, "I see, but now she is yours?"

"No!" Eric exclaimed blinking at the contradiction in his mind and hastily added, "You just stay away from her! You've done enough damage already!"

Four took a threatening step towards Eric but the other didn't budge, "Tris, this man is dangerous, you don't have any idea what he is capable of!" At that Tris spoke up quietly but loud enough for everyone to hear, "He is less a danger than you right now."

He glared daggers at Eric and sneered, "You wish! How about you tell her your real intentions, Eric?" Confusion washed across Eric's features and absent-mindedly he brushed away the blood from his split lip with the back of his hand.

Four let out an annoyed laugh when Eric didn't say anything, "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about!" Tris stepped away from behind Eric's back eyeing him from the side, "What are you talking about, Four?"

Eric's eyes darted between Tris and Four, the air in the room went thicker and he felt heat crawling up his neck, "I don't know what you mean."

Four laughed humorlessly, "Come on, Eric!" he grinned darkly, "Tell us how you told Jeanine that we are here in Amity. That she can find Tris here, and you will help capture her once and for all!"

Eric's whole body tensed at the accusation, jaws tightening he glared at Four before he turned towards Tris. She was glowering at Eric in disbelief and when he reached for her hand she took a step back. He took a deep breath and swallowed heavily, "Tris, this is not true!"

He shot another angry glare towards Four before he grabbed her wrists and pulled her to him, his face contorted trying to control all the different emotions battling for dominance. His voice trembled when she struggled against him, "Please believe me, this is not true! I have nothing to do with this!"

Eric was pleading with her, she had to believe him, she just had to believe him. Tris stared at him, searching his eyes for the truth and eventually pulled herself free from his grip, "Get out..." Her voice was cold and didn't tolerate any dissent.

Hurt ripped through his face and Eric turned to Four, he was about to say something but Tris cut him off while she glared at Four, "You too, Four! Both of you, get out!"

Eric spun to Four and pointed a finger at him, not able to put his anger into words he snorted and rolled his eyes when Tris commanded again, "Get out now!"

Reluctantly they went outside and while Tris sank onto the couch and cried into Christina's shoulder both men stood outside on the porch. Four snorted, "Well done, Eric."

He balled his hands into fists and within a blink of an eye he was in Four's face, "At least I'm not abusing my girlfriend!" he growled at the other man his voice deadly low, "Next time you feel like hitting someone, do it to me, I can take it!" Eric's face twisted in disgust when Four remained silent and stared at him a smug grin tugging at his lips, "How do you even fucking sleep at night?" he snapped and turning on his heel he took off.

"Why do you even care, all of a sudden?" Four called after him but he chose to ignore him.

When Eric came back Four as well as Tris were gone. Christina and Will were sitting in the kitchen having breakfast. Will got up and stopped Eric with a hand on his shoulder before he could get to the bathroom, "Eric?"

The other man shot him a dark look and Will tightened his grip on the other man's shoulder, "We believe you don't have anything to do with this. You just-" Eric just snorted and shrugging him off he pushed past him.

When he was in the bathroom he raked his hands through his hair and tore at the longer strands in desperation. Pacing up and down he tried to come up with how he should approach Tris. Nothing of what Four had said was true, but how was she supposed to believe him. She had every reason to distrust him, he had tried to prove everyone wrong but in the end his former connection to Jeanine was his downfall.

Coming to a halt in front of the mirror he stared at his reflection for a moment, gripping the sink tightly. If he hadn't followed Jeanine's command nothing of this would have happened, at least he liked to believe that he could have prevented this whole mess if he had just thought about it for a minute.

But he had been so eager to fit in that he had been blind. So blind that he had pushed everyone away from him and in the process foiled his chances of ever getting close to Tris. And now that he finally tried to be a good guy, leaving all of his dark past behind, Four accused him of betrayal and pushed Tris out of his reach for good.

A growl worked its way out of his throat and before he could think about it he hit the mirror repeatedly in anger. Blinking he saw blood dripping from his fist into the sink. Grimacing he cursed and stumbled back, hitting the wall behind him he sank to the ground and held his hand.

The door crashed open and Christina rushed in when she saw the blood all over the place. Kneeling next to him she grabbed for his arm, "Eric, this is not-"

"Shut up!" he growled angrily not looking at her and pulled his arm away. She huffed and got up to retrieve the first aid kit. Without another word Christina took a hold on Eric's wrist again and pulled the much larger man to his feet. He didn't resist this time and she pulled him towards the sink. Switching on the faucet she held his hand under the running water rinsing off the glass shards and blood.

Christina smiled to herself when Eric didn't fight back. His eyes were downcast and she could see unshed tears rimming his eyes. When she was done she hugged his hand into a thick towel and pressed down on the wound trying to stop the bleeding.

He didn't look up during the whole process and shifted uncomfortably when Christina sighed and bent down to make him look at her. She let out an exasperated breath and wrapped her fingers a bit tighter around his wrist, "Talk to her."

He growled in response and still refused to look up, "And what am I supposed to say?" His other hand rubbed at his eyes and reluctantly he looked at Christina, "She won't believe me anyway. Four already convinced her that I am the monster." His voice was monotone and quiet, Christina could see though that this affected him more than he let on.

"Eric, talk to her, tell her what you know." He rolled his eyes looking down at his hand, "That's the thing, Christina - I don't know what Four is talking about! I have not spoken to anyone besides you guys, and I definitely didn't see any Erudite crawling around here!"

Checking on his wounds and preparing to wrap it up she mumbled, "Then you tell her that." His lips drew into a thin line thinking back on how disgusted she was at him when Four accused him of the betrayal. Christina chuckled softly, "She thinks higher of you than you seem to imagine." Eric looked up, hope was finally worming its way back into his heart and mind at Christina's comforting words.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, I am so sorry this took such a long time but I had a huge writer's block over the last couple of weeks and months. Plus work kept me really busy so that sometimes I came home just wanting to go to sleep. Anyway, please tell me what you think, this has been the hardest chapter ever, so much dialogue...   
> Happy belated new year! :)
> 
> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Tris crossed her arms and glared at Four. After her initial shock about Four's accusations she had decided that she needed to talk to him about it and they went back to their house before Eric returned from his run.

His answer was simple and short, "I didn't want to worry you." His eyes were suddenly anywhere but on her. She scrunched up her face, "Well, if you're honestly so concerned about my well-being you should have told me!"

He huffed and glared at her, "I wasn't sure about it, yesterday it was merely a suspicion. Besides I couldn't have known that you'd go and bang the enemy behind my-"

"I did not!" she cut him off and glared at him. He exhaled in exasperation, his eyes pierced hers now and she had to struggle to keep eye contact. Squinting at her in suspicsion his words were clipped, "What were you doing then last night?"

She scoffed in anger, inwardly thankful for not opening the door to Eric's room last night. She turned away then, unable to look at him she sat down on the couch, "I couldn't stay here. So I slept at Christina's house," she murmured at last.

He raised his eyebrow obviously not satisfied with her answer, "And just now, before I came over?"

Tris blushed and felt her hands tremble but she tried to keep herself together, she was afraid of him now, more so than ever. Four snorted bitterly as if he could read her mind. "We were talking," she mumbled.

"Talking," he echoed towering over her, "Mark my words, Tris, when Jeanine arrives here to get you, your lover will go back to being the good lap dog he was taught to be!" he sneered, "Just because he didn't do anything yet, doesn't mean he isn't up to something."

She wasn't sure whether Four's accusations against Eric were completely true or not but she knew that he wouldn't make such a scene in front of their friends for nothing. On the other hand she was crestfallen at the thought of Eric betraying her trust. She had started to have feelings for him for quite a while and she wondered whether she was too blind to see what was happening, something that might put her in grave danger.

Tris couldn't fight the tears any longer and buried her face in her hands, it was too much.

"Tris," Four started and sat down next to her laying his arm around her shoulders but she jerked away, not wanting to be touched by him. He tensed at her repulsion and whatever he wanted to say died in his throat. She wept silently while he only sat next to her.

A firm knock broke the silence and Four went to answer it. Tris wiped her face with her sleeve quickly and followed him. When he opened the door her heart dropped to her knees. Eric stood there with his hands in the pockets of his pants, his eyes were cold and he didn't spare Tris a glance. For a moment she feared either of them would start a fight but thankfully nothing happened. 

"We need to talk." It was everything Eric said before he turned and Four followed without looking back. Leaving Tris with her own jumbled thoughts.

Tris didn't see neither of them for the rest of the day and went to do kitchen duty with Christina. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she started when Christina broke the silence, "You should talk to Eric, Tris!"

She huffed angrily and thrust a wet dish at Christina sending her a glare not bothering to answer. "You really should!" Christina insisted, "I know he is far from being a saint but he cares about you. Will and I don't believe the crap Four accuses him of."

Her friend nudged her, "And I think you like each other more than either of you dares to admit."

"He has changed," she admitted, "I would have never thought I could have feelings for him but somehow since Four had left I felt safe whenever I was with Eric. More so than I ever felt with Four."

Christina eyed her with compassion, "I told you many times that you should leave Four." Tris felt tears pricking at her eyes, "I know, but now that Four is so convinced that Eric gave away where we're hiding I'm afraid that it might be true. And that he was playing only with my feelings in order to gain my trust."

Tris' shoulders slumped and she sighed when the other woman gave her a firm hug. "Talk to him," Christina said again. Tris nodded and frowned when the other girl squeezed her arm gently nodding at something behind Tris.

She turned to see Eric coming their way and had to suppress a sigh when she realised how much she had missed seeing him.

"Um," he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, looking at Christina before his eyes settled on Tris, "Can I talk to you?"

Tris nodded solemnly and dried her hands. Following him out to one of the benches in the open dining area she couldn't help but notice his posture. His shoulders were slumped and he hung his head, she was afraid of what he might have to say now. She wanted nothing more than him telling her that the accusations were false.

He took her hands in his gently as soon as they sat down. "Are you okay?" Tris inquired and Eric shook his head, "No, well yes I guess, but.." He eyed his arm where a small injection wound could be seen, "Four injected me with the truth serum again. I wanted him to do it so that he could interrogate me whether I gave away that you're hiding in Amity." He let out a frustrated sigh and worked his jaws but not saying anything else.

It took him a few moments to finally speak again but when he did his voice was low, "I can't change the things I've done in my life. I'm sorry that I tried to hand you over to that bitch. I was blind, I should have just used my head for once. After all I was born Erudite, right?" He cleared his throat when he noticed that he was rambling, "I just wanted to let you know that you made a better person out of me."

"Eric," she cupped his cheek forcing him to look at her, "Just tell me what this was all about. I am so afraid that I might have done the biggest mistake in my life."

He leaned into her touch momentarily before he reached up to lay his hand over hers, "You have done nothing wrong, Tris," he assured her. He sighed and looked down at their still entangled fingers, "I didn't know that Jeanine found out about your hiding place, I honestly didn't. I just hope you believe me that she certainly doesn't know it from me."

Tris' heart skipped a beat at the prospect that Four was wrong, that Eric wasn't involved in this in any way. He sighed and looked down, "Why would I rat you out, after all... you believed in me, that I might be able to change. And I definitely started to change," he gestured around them, "This feels more like home than I would have ever imagined possible."

The genuine smile on his face made her cheeks warm up and for a few moments they just gazed at each other. But soon enough the corners of Eric's lips turned downwards again, "But I think I just told Four," he looked up for a moment just to look away again, "You know..."

Tris felt the corners of her mouth lift at his insecurity, "He knows we kissed," she informed him gently.

Eric shook his head and Tris opened her mouth to speak but was silenced when he scooted a bit closer and wrapped his hands around her arms and looked up at her, "I told him about my feelings towards you." He licked his lips nervously, hope storming through his gray eyes he sighed deeply before he spoke, "I love you, Tris."

He said it as if he was sorry and Tris noticed how she forgot how to breathe, she was so taken aback that she wasn't able to say it right back. And when Eric looked past her suddenly she already knew that it was Four. Eric stood and donned his usual indifferent scowl Tris knew all too well by now was a mask not to let anyone close to him. She stood up as well and eyed Four, the tiny smirk on his lips made Tris realise just how much she despised the man she once loved so dearly.

He didn't look at her though but gestured to Eric and the other seemed to know what he meant as he lifted his foot to stand on the bench. With a swift movement Four unlocked the tether around his ankle and his voice was cold when he addressed the other man, "You're expected to leave tomorrow."

"What?" Tris blurted out on the verge of shouting. She didn't understand, Eric had just confessed that he didn't have to do with any of this.

Eric's eyes flickered briefly to her, guilt ridden, and then with a roll of his eyes looked back at Four. He stared at him releasing an annoyed sigh. "Understand?" Four pressed on, steel lacing his voice.

Tris watched the icy cold looks between the two men and was suddenly reminded of her first fight during initiation where the two of them had a hateful exchange without anyone knowing what it was about. Eric huffed and laughed bitterly, well aware of the fact that the tether was gone but Four still had enough power over him and finally bit out, "Of course."

Eric turned to leave, with a last remorseful look at Tris he sighed and walked back to his house.

Tris turned on Four with a glare, "What does this mean?" Four didn't respond immediately which aggravated Tris even more and she took a step towards him forcing him to look at her, "He is innocent and you're sending him away nonetheless? Why? He has changed!"

Four's face softened but still the coldness didn't leave his eyes, "Tris, do you trust me?"

She glanced at Eric's retreating back and then looked at Four again who reached a hand out to her, "Tris," but she stepped back which sent a scowl to his face. He looked in the direction where Eric had gone to and gestured with a dismissive wave of his hand, "Well then," he huffed, "Go ahead and say goodbye. You probably won't see him for quite a long time."

Tris gaped at him and even though she couldn't comprehend what he meant, she knew that if this was her last time seeing Eric she had to go after him. Not only did he just confess his innocence but also his feelings for her. She left Four standing there without another word and went after Eric.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, I changed the rating to M. *raises eyebrows nervously* Yes, enjoy! Speak to you at the end.
> 
> I do not own Divergent or any of its characters.

When Tris reached Eric he was already in his room with a bag on the table and stuffing clothes into it. Tris watched him for a couple of moments until Eric looked up for a moment. "What are you doing?" It came out harsher than she meant to and Eric sighed, "Packing."

After stuffing the rest of his few clothes into the bag, he didn't have many, he leant against the table, crossing his arms he grinned bitterly, "I'm done."

The silence between them threatened to become uncomfortable as Tris gaped at him, "Eric, what happened? Why do you have to leave?" she finally breathed out.

With a sigh he grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him. Cupping her cheek he rested his forehead against hers and closed his eyes with a sad smile, "I'll lure them away." Tris took a step backwards, "You'll what? How?" she stammered and glared at him in disbelief. He took her hand and tried to remain calm, "I'll go back there and tell them you're not here anymore. Set them on a false track. You will be leaving this place after I left so I won't know where you'll go. This way..."

Tris interrupted him by shaking her head vigorously and her voice started trembling as Eric pulled her to him again, "You can't go!" She gripped the front of his shirt and he could see that she was fighting the tears in her eyes. With his thumb he caressed gently over her cheek and looked at her eyes, her lips, as if to memorise how she looked like. "I have to," he mumbled at last.

"No, don't go!" she exclaimed, "There has to be another way! You can come with us!" He shook his head unable to think of a better way to keep her safe.

"You can't go, I love you too, Eric." His chest heaved with a sigh at her words and he squeezed her hips suddenly fully aware of how desperately she clung to him. It made him realize how much he needed her, how often he had dreamed about hearing those words from her.

"I mean it, Tris," his eyes went to her lips for a split second and then his eyes sought hers again, desperate to get out what he should have said already so many times, "I love you."

Before he could help himself his lips were on hers and he sighed when she gave in so easily. He didn't want to make this good bye worse than it already was but as soon as their tongues met he lost himself in her. Entangling his fingers in her growing hair he pulled back briefly, "I love you, Tris." It was almost involuntary and came out as a soar husk, his voice was desperate even to his own ears. Yet her hands grabbed his shirt fiercely and pulled him into another passionate kiss.

He stumbled blindly towards the bed, he actually just wanted to sit down with her, so he was taken by surprise when she turned them, pushed him down and straddled him. "Eric, I love you, I want to be with you, please don't go." The words tumbled out of her and she leaned forward to kiss him. Pulling back she bit her lip and tried to smile through the tears that were forming in the corners of her eyes. Wrapping his arms around her he kissed her again, this time more passionately and if it was possible he pulled her even closer to him. He moaned when she pushed her hips forward to rub against his groin and he immediately felt himself harden at her urgent movement.

His hands roamed her back until they rested on her ass and timidly he thrust upwards, he smirked when she moaned against his lips as she met his thrust with one of her own. Their tongues battled for dominance and without breaking the kiss Tris fumbled with the buttons of Eric's shirt. When she had undone a few he grabbed his shirt impatiently and pulled it over his head, tossing it blindly away he grabbed the hem of her shirt and lifted it slowly as she sucked and bit his tongue.

When she leaned back as he pulled the shirt off of her his breath hitched as he noticed that she wasn't wearing a bra. He gulped and caressed his hands over her womanly curves and down her side, he leaned forward to suck on one nipple and with his hand twisted and pulled the other. Her soft moans resounded in his ears and he smiled against her breast as she arched her body towards him. She held onto his shoulders and threw her head back as he gave the other nipple the same attention, alternating between sucking and biting playfully.

Not stopping in his ministrations he pushed her off his lap and when she stood before him he kissed her toned stomach. The palms of his hands caressed down her sides and when he looked up at her for her consent she nodded, so he slowly pulled down her pants.

Kissing and licking at her hips he pushed her onto the bed. He lay her onto her back and continued down her belly until his lips arrived at her panty line. His fingers moved on their own accord and hooked under the side of her panties. She arched her back so her body lifted off the bed and it was all the encouragement he needed to remove the offending garment. In doing so he noticed how damp her panties were and he had to shift to ease his growing desire.

Licking his lips in anticipation he knelt between her legs and reached out to caress his hand down the inside of her thigh, he smiled at her when she let out a shaky sigh. He bent down and kissed her leg, alternating between kissing and licking he worked his way down the inside of her thigh. The lower he got the heavier became her breathing. When he almost reached her center he looked up at her to see her watching him with her lips parted and her eyes half-lidded. He could already smell her intoxicating scent and he had to shift again to relieve some of the tension.

He smirked at her while his fingers glided down the other leg until they too were almost at her warm center. Her eyes fluttered shut and he looked down at her already moist core. Slowly he glided his index finger down from her clit and over her hot entrance. The moan she released turned him on even more and his fingers moved on their own accord. Gliding up and down her slick folds he marveled at her involuntary movements every time he rubbed over her clit.

Laying flat on his stomach he kissed her thigh while his finger glided past her folds and he moaned in unison with her at the hotness that engulfed his finger. Working his finger in and out he grabbed onto her thigh when her hips lifted up from the bed in order to hold her in place.

After a few moments he inserted a second finger and groaned when she moaned loudly. He watched in fascination as his fingers moved in and out of her with ease. He looked up at her as he increased the pace and he saw that she had her head thrown back and she was holding onto the headboard arching her back. He felt like exploding already and while he kept moving his fingers his tongue reached out to flick over her clit.

The moans that he elicited from her this way almost drove him crazy with lust and he increased the speed once more. He noticed how his own breathing became laboured at the thought that he wanted to soon replace his fingers with his dick and wondered how long he could last, she was already so hot and tight around his fingers. He felt her tighten even more and his fingers were slick while working in and out of her, he felt himself twitch as her orgasm washed violently over her and she moaned wildly.

Licking her juices from his fingers he started to crawl up to her but she took him by surprise suddenly and sat up. Pushing him onto his knees her hands made quick work of pulling down his pants. She halted briefly to trace her hand over the bulk in his boxers. He groaned at her touch and saw her smiling up at him before she dragged down the last piece of clothing between them.

He wanted it, wanted to feel her lips on him, yet he felt the urge to say something, "You don't have to, Tris." Even to him it sounded weak and she sat up on her knees pouting playfully which made him smirk at her boldness. Yet it was wiped away quickly when she wrapped her fingers around him without hesitation, "But I want to," she leaned forward and he could already feel her breath on him as she murmured, "And I will."

Before he could even think of a reply her tongue darted out to lick at the moisture on his head and he groaned closing his eyes. Her lips closed around him and when she dragged her tongue all over his head again his hips bucked at the sensation. He wanted to say sorry, because it wasn't meant to urge her on or frighten her but instead a guttural groan escaped his throat.

She took him in slowly, inch by inch, and he had to restrain himself not to thrust forward into her hot soft mouth. It was almost unbearable and he squeezed his eyes shut to focus on not coming right then. Opening his eyes he looked down at her head moving up and down for a few moments before he cursed, grabbing her wrists he brought her up for a heated kiss, "Tris, it's been a while, I don't want to ruin this."

With a chuckle she pushed him gently onto his back and straddled him. He grabbed her ass as she started kissing him passionately and rubbed her wet core over his dripping cock for a few moments. Grabbing between them she took hold of him and lined herself up with him. His eyes went wide and he wanted to ask for her consent again, even though she was the one on top. He opened his mouth but instead of asking he groaned as she pushed down on him and the tip was already buried in her. She was so warm that he couldn't think straight anymore and he moaned low in his throat. He watched her eyes close as she continued her torturously slow descent onto him.

Grabbing her hips he smirked, "Such a tease." Her eyes flew open in surprise when with a quick thrust he buried himself deep inside of her and he couldn't help the moan escaping him when she completely engulfed him.

After catching her breath she started slowly moving up and down on him, she moved up so far that he almost slipped out of her only to thrust back down on him again. One of his hands moved to cup her breast and caressed the nipple with his thumb, encouraged by her moans he pinched it and felt her tightening around him.

Each of her thrusts were met with an upwards thrust of his and he watched with fascination how she moaned lustfully. She gasped when he sat up suddenly, wrapped his arms around her waist and flipped them over. Leaning on his elbows he continued to thrust in and out of her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and urged him on to go faster. His name fell from her lips seemingly involuntary and he smiled as she tried to keep the eye contact but failed.

He wanted to kiss her but it turned sloppy as she as well as him moaned in ecstasy. So he kept watching her and even though he enjoyed watching her, they were still going too slow for his liking.

With a few swift movements he sat up, grabbed her leg and turned her around. Taking a hold of her hips he chuckled when she gasped and lifted her ass so she was in a kneeling position in front of him.

"What are you doing?" He smirked at her surprise and leaned down to husk into her ear, "Give my girl what she needs." Roughly grabbing her hips he slowly started pushing into her until he was buried to the hilt. Slowly pulling out he savoured the elongated moan she let out, she pulsated around him so he thrust back into her quickly.

Setting a needy pace he pounded in and out of her now. She bent forward to brace herself on her forearms and the new angle was mind blowing, he had to really focus now not to come before she did.

He bent forward to brace himself with one hand on the headboard of the bed and with the other held onto her hips. Every thrust turned her moans louder and picking up the pace once more he felt his climax approaching fast now so he closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. But soon she moaned his name again, urging him on and suddenly he felt her tighten around him, her walls were squeezing him and he released a desperate groan as he spilled into her.

Slowly riding out their high he noticed that her entire body was glistening with sweat. With a smile he collapsed to the side pulling her with him, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her close to his chest. Nuzzling the crook of her neck he inhaled her scent and smiled when she let out a content sigh.

"I've waited for this for a very long time," he mumbled after a few moments of just laying together. Tris turned slightly to look at him over her shoulder and frowned, "How long?"

He eyed her, unsure of whether or not to tell her since when he had a crush on her. Back then he hadn't fully realized what those feelings were every time he saw her. He sighed and she turned to fully face him, caressing her fingertips over his upper arm. She chuckled when goosebumps started to form and he pecked her lips.

He stared at her and she frowned again, "Well?" Propping himself up on his elbow he kissed her gently, "Let's just say the little Abnegation girl jumping down the Dauntless rabbit hole caught my attention right away." He smirked when she chuckled, "It didn't feel like I caught your attention in a romantic way."

"Well," Eric shifted so he lay half on top of her, "You were only an initiate and I was a leader, this could have meant for me to lose my position. Plus, you seemed rather interested in Four, which drove me nuts but I was too proud to try something anyway. So basically I was a selfish ass." She laughed at his confession and kissed the tip of his nose affectionately.

Tracing her body with his fingertips he leaned down to kiss her on the lips, "But now you're mine and I won't let anything or anybody take you away from me," he mumbled between kisses. Her face turned serious while her fingers drew circles on his shoulder blades, "Please don't leave." Eric heaved out a sigh and smiled fondly, "I don't want to," he grabbed her thigh and wrapping her leg around his hip he flipped her onto her back and smirked, "And I don't think I can."

Brushing his lips against hers he noticed with a sense of satisfaction how perfectly her body molded against his as he settled between her legs. Spreading her legs further he grinned when Tris raised her eyebrows and wiggled her hips playfully against him, "Already again?"

He rubbed the head against her clit and then his complete hardened length over her moist entrance. When she closed her eyes and moaned he suppressed a groan and grinned, "As I said, I had been waiting for this for a very long time." And then slowly he pushed into her and made love to her until they were spent and fell asleep in each other's arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, there it is, my very first M rated scene! What do you think? Good, bad? Constructive criticism is always very welcome. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading! :)


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Divergent or its characters.

Tris awoke in the middle of the night and smiled when she felt Eric's arm around her waist and his body snuggled up to her. They had finally confessed their love for each other and it made her happy to be able to wake up next to him. Opening her eyes she frowned because it was dark outside and only the faint light of the lamp outside in the backyard lit up the room slightly. She turned slowly not wanting to wake Eric and apparently his sleep was so deep that he didn't notice her turning in his arms.

Smiling to herself Tris looked at the man who not long ago had terrified her more than anything. He looked innocent and young in his sleep, his usual scowl was replaced by a soft expression of pure relaxation. She didn't want him to leave, she had told him again before they fell asleep. A sigh and a whispered 'I love you' was the only answer she got before he pulled her against him and they doze off.

A faint shout from outside caught her attention suddenly. She sat up on her ellbow and strained her ears. Looking down at Eric she smiled because nothing seemed to be able to wake him up. Then there were more shouts and she turned and sat up in the bed. An incoherent mumble from behind her was the only indication she got that he had noticed her moving away from him, but otherwise he remained fast asleep.

After quickly putting on her clothes she looked down on Eric's sleeping form, for a moment she considered waking him but for some reason she thought otherwise and left the room. Walking through the living room she heard faint gun shots and the noises outside increased their volume. When she stepped out on the porch at first she didn't see anything but there were more shouts and cries in the distance. It sounded like there were some fights near the assembly hall and her blood froze at the realisation that apparently whatever attack Four was implying yesterday was already in progress.

Tris quickly ran back into the house and shouted, "Guys, Amity is under attack!" Not waiting for Christina, Will or Eric to follow her, she sprinted outside again in the direction where the noise were coming from. There were even more guns fired and the closer she got to the assembly hall, she could see heavy military trucks standing in the fields, inbetween houses and dark clad men streaming out of them. Some Amity were returning fire and Tris tried to make herself as small as possible as she advanced onto the battle field.

Peaking slowly around the corner of a house, Tris made out men and women clad in black and dark blue attire. They moved fast and stormed into the houses seemingly searching for something or someone - probably her. Her blood ran cold when she thought of innocent people dying because of her.  
She poised her weapon, started breathing as slowly as she possibly could, aimed and fired at one of the intruders' legs. She hit the target right on and crouched down into hiding, waited a few moments and then stood up to aim again. The intruders were dragging away the injured man and looked about for her whereabouts.  
Her mind was racing and just when she was about to turn around to see whether the others had followed her, Tris suddenly felt the barrel of a gun press against the back of her head. Her heart stuttered in her chest as she heard the click of the safety being switched off.

"Look who we have here," a familiar voice drawled behind her and she quickly matched it to Max'. Tris turned quickly in order to slap the gun away from her head. Yet she gasped when Max caught her swinging arm, twisting her wrist he knocked the gun out of her hand. He caught her throat in a deathly grip and pushed her against the wall of the house. Gasping for air Tris tried to wriggle free from his grip. He grunted with the effort to keep her still and not get struck by her flailing arms and legs, but all the kicking and trashing didn't have an effect on this experienced warrior.

Pressing the barrel of the gun against her temple, he chuckled darkly, "Being in Amity for so long, you lost somewhat of your fighting skills, huh?" Before she could retort anything, he slapped her with the gun across the face and her world turned black.

When she awoke she was kneeling on the ground close to a truck. It was still dark and she heard voices. Some of them were congratulating Max for the quick succession in finding 'Jeanine's priority target'. Her head was pounding and her jaw felt slightly swollen where he had hit her. Shaking her head, she tried to focus on who was around her, yet except for Max she hardly regocnized anyone in his troop. One of his guards was holding her in place with a tight grip on her shoulder. She looked down at her hands which were in handcuffs and sighed in silent frustration. She swung her head around to see whether they had captured anyone else and whether she could see the extent of the fight, whether anyone got hurt and whether anyone had even noticed that she got captured.

Her eyes were blurry but when she saw a familiar pair of shoes she slowly looked up to see Eric walking towards her. Her heart dropped when she saw a deep scowl plastered onto his face and his eyes were locked on her.

"Eric!" Max exclaimed when he saw him, "So they didn't kill you off after all!" But Eric didn't answer, his eyes were fixated on Tris who was torn between hope that he would fight against Max and free her, and fear that this might have been his plan all along. She strained her neck to look up at him when he came over to her and saw a slight trail of blood under his nose. He looked so terribly different from when she last saw him in his bed next to her and it almost broke her heart. He looked as cold as he did during initiation.

"Well, look who I managed to catch," Max boasted towering over her and Eric nodding curtly before returning his attention back on Tris. He knelt down in front of her and grabbed her chin to turn her face. His thumb gently caressed over her cheek and she flinched when pain shot through her. She had to fight back tears when their eyes met, a few hours ago they had been full of compassion. She had thought that he had changed, that his feelings for her were true. He had confessed his love for her. But now there was nothing. "Eric..." she whispered in hope that he was only faking it.

Ignoring her he snorted and addressed Max, "You got her pretty good." The expression on his face did not change, not even a tiny bit. Max laughed, "Yeah, she put up a fight, so I had to knock her out." Eric didn't react but locked his eyes with hers. Tris' blood started boiling when Four's words from last night came back to her. _"Mark my words, Tris, when Jeanine arrives here to get you, your lover will go back to being the good lap dog he was taught to be!"_ And she had to refrain from spitting at Eric for how angry it made her, that Four seemed to have been right all along.

Max frowned when Eric silently stared at Tris, "Hey, by the way, what happened? What's the bloody nose about?" Eric absent-mindedly wiped his nose with the back of his hand, looking at his hand with surprise as if he didn't even notice but then he shrugged, "Nothing much, just ran into Four, that's all."

When he rose to his feet Tris noticed the gun in his hand and something snapped inside her. In a very long time she hadn't been as angry at anyone as she was now with Eric. Not only had he made her feel something for him, for him out of all people. But he had also made her believe that he had changed, that he would never hurt her. And she had even defended him in front of Four who had tried to tell her about Eric's plan. Only to be betrayed in the worst way possible.

Her face twisted into a snarl and she jumped to her feet. Freeing herself from the guard's grip who was trying to hold her down, she threw herself at Eric, pounding her handcuffed hands against his chest angrily. He tried stepping back to avoid her wrath but she came launching after him, "This was what you had planned all along, wasn't it? You son of a-" In the blink of an eye Eric had grabbed her wrist and twisted her around pressing her back to his chest. Tears were threatening to run freely down her cheek and she gasped when she felt his hot breath on her ear as he leaned down to her.

Tris squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to wake herself from this nightmare but when she opened her eyes again, she realized that this was no dream at all. She had never felt as confused as she did now, a few hours ago she had loved his dominance over her, now it made her sick. It seemed that he needed a moment to come up with whatever evil remark he wanted to throw her way. She blinked as it felt like forever that he was silently holding her in a tight grip, breathing angrily against her ear.

She looked over to see Max smirking, standing a few feet away he shared some amused glances with the other men as they watched Tris make a scene. She flinched when Eric snarled loud enough that everyone could hear him, "Look, you were a pretty decent fuck but if you don't want to get killed," he paused to twist her back around towards him. His face was merely inches away from hers and his voice changed to an angry hiss which only she was able to hear, "And you ever so much as considered trusting me," he leaned forward and the world seemed to slow down around them when his voice dropped to a whisper right next to her ear, "You better start now."

Before she was able to wrap her mind around whether he had just humiliated and threatened to kill her or hinted at trying to help her, he shoved her forward with more force than she expected and she stumbled backwards to the ground. With a grunt she landed on her behind and stared up at him. He stared right back, his typical smirk showing on his face now, but it didn't reach his eyes. She faintly heard Max and his minions howl with laughter. Even Eric's voice sounded as if she was under water when he snapped at her loud enough for everyone to hear, "Got it, Stiff?"

Eric rolled his eyes in annoysance when Max clapped his shoulder still laughing, "It's good to see you haven't lost any of your viciousness here in Amity!" Tris was still too dumbfounded at what had just happened that she didn't struggle when one of the guards dragged her to her feet and pushed her towards the truck. As if in trance she entered the vehicle and didn't fight when she was shoved into a seat.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Divergent or any of its characters.

Climbing into the car after Tris, Eric made sure to shove her to the very far end of the row. Max sat down across from them and the rest of the men and women filed into the car as well. While the car started up, Eric absent-mindedly brushed the rest of the blood from his nose with his sleeve.

Max watched him for a moment and then spoke up with a smirk, "How was she?" He leaned forward and gestured to Tris, "How was it like to bang your enemy's girlfriend?" He smirked at his own words, "Was it easy to seduce her or did she put up a fight?"

Eric slowly turned his head towards her, "Well, for a Stiff quite nice." She raised her head and looked him straight in the eyes, "The best part of it was banging Four's girl behind his back, and her liking every single moment of it." Her face fell at his words and he looked away. He cast Max his trademark smirk, "That kind of revenge is delicious."

She wrinkled her nose when Max eyed her like a predator, "I can imagine." He shifted forward in his seat and grinning he placed his hand on her knee, "Before we turn her in - do you mind if I take her for a ride?"

Before he could even think about it, Eric had grabbed Max by the throat and pressed his gun to the other man's head. Max' eyes were wide and the whole vehicle fell silent. He felt all eyes on him and his mind was racing. Eric's glare was deadly and his blood boiled but through the red curtain of sheer anger he felt Tris' leg press against his. "Don't you even think about it," he hissed through gritted teeth and pushed Max violently back into his seat, "I don't share!"

Sitting back he noticed the pressure of Tris' leg against his was gone, she even made a point in shrinking away from him, avoiding his sideway glance.

To everyone's surprise Max chuckled and the atmosphere relaxed somewhat, "Alright, I got it! Never get between Eric and his prey." He cleared his throat, "Anyway, Jeanine will be happy to know that you took care of Four and that you're bringing back Tris to her. We have killed off a lot of Divergents already. They weren't worthy enough. Let's hope Tris is what we are looking for."

Eric eyed the other man, his hands formed into fists in his lap while he nodded. Slowly he turned his head towards Tris who purposefully looked anywhere but at him. After a moment he returned his attention to Max, "I didn't kill him." Max snorted and Eric raised an eyebrow at him, "What's the point in having an archenemy if you kill him off?"

Max laughed humourlessly, "Jeanine will be pissed about that."

He shrugged his shoulders and ground his teeth before he spoke, "I don't care. I could have done so the last couple of days." Leaning back in his seat he crossed his arms over his chest, "But Tris has always been my priority."

Tris spoke up after a few moments of silence, "Four will come and help me, you know." Max as well as Eric turned their heads towards her. Looking Eric straight into his eyes she pressed her lips into a thin line. Max narrowed his eyes at her confident tone and laughed arrogantly.

Eric regarded her and slowly an evil grin curled up his lips, "You know, Stiff, that's kind of the plan," his words were dripping with venom, "Let him come, so I can serve his head up right before Jeanine."

That shut Tris up, she looked away from him and for the rest of the ride they kept silent.

When they made it to Erudite headquarters, everyone filed out of the car and Eric grabbed Tris' arm. He pulled her up and Tris stepped forward to get out of the car, but Eric stopped her unnoticed by anyone. Breathing in his chest rose but his face was completely devoid of any emotion. Tris glared at him but when his nostrils flared, her lips curled up into a faint smile. His features relaxed somewhat and when she nodded her head, an involuntary smile broke out on his face for a split second.

Tris gasped when Eric shoved her out of the car, she almost stumbled if it wasn't for his vice-like grip on her arm. They made their way towards the building with Max next to Eric and again he had a deep scowl on his face, not letting go of Tris' arm.

Max chuckled watching Eric and clapped his shoulder, "It's good to have you back and see that Amity didn't break your spirit." The only acknowledgement Eric gave him was a half-hearted smirk.

As soon as they stepped through the doors of Erudite, Tris' eyes widened when she saw Peter stepping in the way. An arrogant grin plastered over his face he watched them approach. Eric stopped in front of him and scowled at him, but Peter looked at Tris, travelling his eyes up and down her body. He licked his lips and grinned when Tris wrinkled her nose in disgust, "It's so good to see you again. We had finally found out about your hiding place." He turned his attention towards Eric, "You failed on such a large scale, Jeanine didn't appreciate you slacking. Thank goodness Four led us straight to their hideaway on his way back from the factionless sector."

Tris winced when she felt Eric's fingers tighten around her arm, "Congratulations, Peter!" He eyed his black and blue attire, "Seems like you're one of us now."

Peter laughed, "Yeah, since you've been gone for so long, Jeanine appointed me with the task of finding her." He scrutinized him from head to toe, "You know, Amity doesn't suit you. I hope they didn't soften you. You used to be such an outstanding warrior."

Scoffing in exasperation Eric rolled his eyes and smirked, "I'll lock her away and then I can show you just how much I have softened." Not even waiting for an answer from Peter, Eric shoved Tris past him to the elevators. The doors opened and Max and a few guards followed them.

Eric felt her eyes on him but he made a point of not looking at her. Max turned towards Eric, "We will lock her away for a day or two. Jeanine is currently out on business matters. By now she should have already received word that we managed to get Tris." Eric's fingers flexed around her arm and he nodded curtly.

A soft ding announced their arrival at the prison level and Max excused himself, leaving only one of the guards with Eric and Tris.

When they arrived in front of a cell Eric pushed her inside. Stepping inside he grabbed her hands and took off the handcuffs. Regarding her he lingered in front of her.

Her eyes were searching his, "Eric?" she whispered in hope that he'd say something, anything that would assure her he wasn't going to let it happen.

He glanced over his shoulder to see the soldier still standing at the door of the cell in case she would try to escape. He sighed and turned, "Fuck off!" he instructed but the other man hesitated.

Tris exhaled sharply when Eric suddenly pushed her against the wall, his hand on her throat and his face so close to hers that she could feel his breath. "Leave us alone," Eric growled, not taking his eyes of of her and Tris' eyes widened in horror. The other man chuckled and left.

Eric's eyes softened as soon as they were alone and Tris realized to her surprise that he didn't use any violence to hold her in place. Relaxing she even noticed his other hand rubbing her arm to comfort her. He just stared at her, emotions storming through his eyes Tris couldn't place. Her face softened and she looked up at him, not able to say anything. Trembling she raised her hand to cup his cheek and she relaxed eventually when he closed his eyes and leaned into her touch with a soft sigh.

Opening his eyes he brushed his hand to the back of her neck drawing her to him. Squeezing her hip he kissed her passionately. And when she kissed him back with equal fervour a soft moan escaped his throat. Breathing heavily they broke apart and Tris saw compassion mixed with desperation in his handsome features.

"I'll get you out of here," he murmured against her lips and latched onto her mouth again. He poured all the feelings he had developed for her into the kiss to ensure that she believed him. He had been too late to prevent her from getting captured by Max and his troops. Now he had to play along, disguise himself as the old Eric. The man he thought he was able to leave behind when he had decided to start a new life.

When he moved to turn away she grabbed his arm to hold him back. He grabbed her by the waist and pressed his forehead to hers. Sighing he whispered, "I promise. I have a plan." He heaved out a sigh, "Four is part of that plan. He'll come." He captured her lips once more before he whispered, "No matter what I say or do, remember that I love you, Tris."

Tris felt tears sting her eyes when he bit his bottom lip. She nodded and tried to say something but before she could he walked away and locked the door. Without looking back he was gone.


End file.
